Nagpur: The Dharampeth zone of Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC), in association with its garden department and volunteers of Green Vigil Foundation, on Tuesday launched a drive to remove illegal hoardings, advertisements boards, posters that are defacing trees and other public property. Commercial establishments putting up advertisements are also being fined.
However, the civic body faced resistance from citizens of some localities during the action.
It was a long-time demand of environmentalists to take action against the damage caused to trees due to advertisements.
Recently, Green Vigil Foundation wrote a letter to NMC garden department’s advisor Sudhir Matey requesting removal of advertisement boards from trees. The NMC removed e-cart load of flex boards and nails from the trees in the zone during its almost two-hour drive in various roads. The roads included Dharampeth zone office to Gokulpeth Fruits Market road, the one surrounding Children’s Traffic Park, Traffic Park to Dharampeth School Road, Shankar Nagar Square to Bajaj Nagar Square etc The civic body removed around 42 illegal hoardings on Day 1.
Matey told that the establishments putting up hoardings and posters on trees will be punished as per the Maharashtra Prevention of Defacement of Property Act, 1995, and Tree Preservation Act, 1975.
After these actions, an FIR will be registered against the violators. has been highlighting the issue since long. In the past too, similar action had been initiated but despite actions, advertisement boards and posters continue to be fixed on trees.
Kaustav Chatterje, Green Vigil Foundation’s founder and green activist, said trees are not meant to be defaced. “When nails are fixed on the bark of trees, it creates a pathway for fungal infection and slowly the tree dies,” said Chatterjee.
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