Hoardings case: HC pulls up TN govt, railways

The Madras High Court today took a serious view of hoardings coming up in government premises and unauthorised ones in railway areas and said it could have no option but to appoint a court committee to monitor and check the menace, if authorities fail to take steps in this regard.
It asked the Director of Fisheries and Southern Railways Senior Divisional Commercial Manager, Chennai Division, to be personally present on the next date of hearing.
The First Bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice R Mahadevan was passing interim orders on a batch of petitions seeking a direction to remove all illegal hoardings in Chennai City.

Expressing disappointment over new hoardings coming up, the bench in its order said, "We must express our disappointment that new hoardings keep coming up even after orders have been passed."
"Does it not show that the authorities concerned appear to be either devoid of machinery to check this or doubt is created on their intent. We have made it clear that if this menace is not stopped, we will have no option but to appoint a court committee to take over the task and monitor the same, as we are hardly expected to verify each of the hoardings," it said.

"The problem is getting aggravated in respect of what we will note hereinafter, but suffice to say, it is the job of the authorities concerned to check this and not that the petitioner is expected to roam around the streets of Chennai to check where the hoardings are erected," the bench said, and posted the matter for further hearing to August 29.

The bench took a serious view of the hoardings that were erected in Government Eco Park and at the Tamil Nadu Aquaculture Laboratory, Kilpauk.
"Considering the number of these violations, we direct the Director of Fisheries department who is in-charge of Tamil Nadu Aquaculture Laboratory, to remain personally present in court on the next date of hearing," it said.

Referring to unauthorised hoardings in railway areas, the bench said in case of Southern Railways also "there are some violations, for which the Senior Divisional Commercial Manager of Southern Railways should be present on the next date of hearing.