Despite repeated High Court directives and government orders against the erection of illegal flex boards, hoarding, flags, and banners in public places such as the road margins and medians by political parties and others, only ₹53,510 has been collected as fines and prosecution has been initiated in just 10 cases in Ernakulam district in the ten-month period till this October-end.
This was just a fraction of ₹4.54 lakh imposed as fine across Kochi Corporation, 13 municipalities and 82 panchayats in the district during the period. While the Corporation imposed ₹70,000 and collected ₹25,500, only ₹1,510 has been collected from across 13 municipalities against the total fine imposed of ₹3.43 lakh. Eighty-two panchayats accounted for a total fine of only ₹41,140 of which ₹26,500 alone has been collected.
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While Aluva municipality alone imposed a fine of ₹2.20 lakh out of the total fine ₹3.43 lakh collectively imposed by 13 municipalities, it hasn’t collected a single penny out of that fine till October 31. The Perumbavur municipality, which imposed a total fine of ₹1.23 lakh has collected just a paltry ₹1,000. The Angamaly municipality imposed a total fine of just ₹510 and collected it in entirety. Significantly, ten municipalities imposed zero fine on offenders.
The Kerala High Court had on October 31 ordered the committee constituted at the district levels to immediately remove every board, banners etc installed on public places in violation of the court’s orders from across the State and impose a maximum penalty of ₹5,000 on each of them in addition to the expenses for their removal and disposal of such boards. The court also noted that failure of committees to collect penalties would result in loss of public revenue. When the State was going through a financial crisis, one failed to understand how this source of revenue could be given up particularly when unauthorised boards were removed on a regular basis, the court observed.
The local self-government department has since then issued a circular directing the imposition of fine of ₹5,000 and initiation of prosecution measures against the offenders. Fine will be imposed based on the relevant provisions of the municipal Act while the police will register cases as requested by the local bodies.
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So far this year, only Kochi Corporation has initiated prosecution measures and that too in just 10 cases, while the figure was zero for municipalities and panchayats.
During the period, 24,986 unauthorised boards, banners, flags and hoardings have been removed from across the district – 17,685 from Corporation, 2,974 from municipal limits and 4,327 from panchayats. Mayor M. Anilkumar said that Corporation officials keep removing such materials at frequent intervals.
