Despite the hoarding ban, festival banners return to the city. This flex stands near Lazer Road.
Credit: DH Photo
Bengaluru: With the festival season, illegal hoardings and flexes have returned across the city.
Despite a ban, each festival brings banners and flexes, mostly put up by political leaders and party workers.
Hoardings began appearing in mid-December, with political leaders wishing citizens for Christmas and New Year. Now, Makara Sankranti wishes overflow on to Bengaluru roads.
Corporation officials acknowledged the return of illegal hoardings and said they are trying to remove as many as possible, forming teams with area police to tackle the problem.
“There is a rise in illegal hoardings. We are constantly removing them and conducting special drives. We plan to set up a task force with police officers to tackle this problem,” said Rajendra KV, Commissioner, Bengaluru West City Corporation.
An official from the Bengaluru South City Corporation said the hoardings return even after removal.
“Every time we remove them, they come back after a few days, often at the same spots. We are conducting awareness drives and trying to remove as many as possible,” the official said.
A resident from Bengaluru North said the hoardings are so regular that people are used to them.
“Last time, there were hoardings for Diwali programmes at a few places. They remained for a long time, and only recently I noticed they were replaced with Sankranti wishes and programmes. It has become normal now,” the resident said.
Officials from other corporations said they could not file cases as they did not know who put up the illegal hoardings. Where they could identify those responsible, cases would be filed.