HYDERABAD: A campaign to remove or dismantle huge billboards within the limits of the Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (HMC), Cantonment Board Hyderabad (CBH) and Qasimabad Municipal Committee continued on Tuesday in the wake of strict directives recently issued by Supreme Court for the implementation of its earlier orders.

The apex court had on July 4, 2019 separately directed cantonment boards across Pakistan to remove all such structures within the next six weeks.

The HMC on Tuesday claimed that it had written to the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) to remove signboards erected on public properties in order to avoid any unpleasant incident. The corporation said that in the light of the apex court’s orders, signboards and billboards were being removed from all main arteries and flyovers over the last couple of days.

The HMC is removing signboards, billboards and hoardings mainly covering Latifabad and City taluka almost round the clock. Such structures are also hung with flyovers. Countless others still dot the roads and, according to reports, some boards within the limits of HMC and Qasimabad Municipal Committee belonged to certain political parties’ activists thus they were likely to be spared.

The CBH has also removed many hoardings and billboards. Pakistan Chowk, falling within its jurisdiction, has recently been cleared of such boards which were raised on footpaths and road islands.

The billboards in Hilltop’s greenbelt are to be removed as machinery was being obtained for dismantling them.

Published in Dawn, August 12th, 2020