Pasting posters on government properties and public places without permission from authorities will soon land the managing directors or heads of the institutions in jail, if Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has its way.
The civic body has written to the state government to strengthen the existing first class magistrate court allotted to GHMC. They say they require one more first class magistrate, sufficient staff and other facilities to deal exclusively with cases pertaining to prevention of disfigurement of public places Act. GHMC commissioner M.T. Krishna Babu has requested the director-general of police V. Dinesh Reddy to depute to them one police inspector, two sub-inspectors and a posse of constable-ranked personnel, including home guards. These cops will work on deputation with the vigilance and enforcement wing of GHMC and will lead the enforcement teams.
As the GHMC staff has been unsuccessful in curbing indiscriminate pasting of posters, the civic body decided to take the help of police, which will lead the teams and inspect the main identified roads at night. They will take photographs and maintain records of posters. In the first instance, notices will be served on the managements for whom the publicity posters have been printed and also on the agencies accepting the contract of pasting posters.
GHMC commissioner Krishna Babu told this newspaper: “In the first stage we will issue notices on both the parties — for whom posters are printed and the agency pasting them. Heavy penalties will be levied. If the same organisation or agency commits the offence more than once, such cases will be prosecuted. Summons will be issued to MDs of the organisations,” Mr Krishna Babu said.