Mumbai: BMC removes 500 illegal banners in a week

With the dahi handi festival just coming to an end and Ganeshotsav about a week away, the hoarding menace has again come to the forefront.

With the dahi handi festival just coming to an end and Ganeshotsav about a week away, the hoarding menace has again come to the forefront.

Last week, the civic officials removed around 500 banners and posters – 50% of those were political ones, filed 80 police complaints and prosecuted 21.

Eighty-six banners were removed from Dahisar area – the highest number in the suburbs.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is yet to start removing banners in the island city.

Sharad Bande, superintendent of license department, said, “The removal of banners/posters is still going on ward-wise as it is a regular process. There is an increase in banners put up during festivals.”

In the past month, the civic officials removed about 1,500 banners and filed 288 police complaints. A total of 37 people have been prosecuted.

A total of 160 banners and posters were removed after dahi handi and the officials have not completed the task.

The banner policy which completely bans political banners has not yet been cleared by the municipal corporation.

A civic official requesting anonymity said: “It has been two years since the banner policy had been drafted and put before the group leaders, but politicians have not approved it. During festivals, political banners are put up all across the city and we have to remove them and register police complaints.”