The Hindu : Karnataka / Mysore News : Drop plans on more hoardings, corporation urged

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 02, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Mysore

Drop plans on more hoardings, corporation urged

By Our Staff Correspondent

Large commercial hoardings spoil the aesthetics of Mysore city which has some magnificent heritage buildings. — Photo: M.A. Sriram

MYSORE, MARCH 1. The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage has flayed Mysore City Corporation for its plans to "flood the city" with commercial hoardings.

In a press release, Krishna Vattam, chairman of the trust's Mysore chapter and veteran journalist, said the corporation's decision is a retrograde step. It is not in tune with the city's aesthetics. He appealed to the Heritage Committee to prevail upon the corporation to drop its plans.

Mr. Vattam was responding to advertisements issued by the corporation announcing public auction of rights to display hoardings in various parts of the city. If allowed, the corporation will install 100 hoardings in each of the five zones and 500 commercial hoardings will come up in the city. But the issue is not about numbers but about the size of hoardings. He wondered if the corporation is concerned about the visual pollution.

The trust said the corporation's decision interfered with the citizens right to unimpaired view of the environs and ambience.

Mr. Vattam pointed out that at present there are 300 hoardings with an occupied area of 70,000 sq. ft. The notification seeks to have an additional 50 hoardings that will increase the occupied area to 3.3 lakh sq. ft. The maximum size of the hoardings have been fixed at 45 ft. x 15 ft. The tendency among the corporates is to opt for large hoarding.

Proposed zones

Mr. Vattam said the proposed five zones are within a radius of 2 km. from the Krishnarajendra Circle and the main roads beginning here will be flooded with 500 more commercial hoardings. Even the buffer zone between the two roads comes under this purview.

He described the corporation's decision to spare six circles, the J.L.B. Road, Railway Circle up to M.N. Jois Circle, Irwin Road, Gandhi Square and the area around the palace and 100 metres from the heritage buildings, as a small sop. He said the corporation will do well not to push its plan and wait till the Heritage Committee gives its clearance.

Threat to aesthetics

The corporation's move comes at a time when there is growing awareness to conserve the aesthetics of the city and protect its heritage. The State Government recently announced the Heritage Committee and mandated the members to come out with ideas and suggestions to help protect the beauty of Mysore. The non-governmental organisations (NGOs) fear the corporation is diluting and neutralising the efforts to conserve the beauty of the city. It is only recently that a similar controversy broke out over the corporation's decision to erect large commercial hoardings on the double road leading from the Court Complex to the Oriental Research Institute.

The double road is divided by an impressive boulevard and the road is dotted with heritage structures.

The Mysore Area Heritage Task Force identified the road for "Heritage Walk" and hence the corporation drew flak for its decision to introduce commercial hoardings there.

The NGOs drew attention to the building bylaw violation in the city and accused the corporation for turning a blind eye to such violations that resulted in haphazard development and diluted the architectural magnificence of Mysore.

When the Government announced the constitution of Heritage Committee, the NGOs and the citizens welcomed the move as it was perceived to strengthen conservation efforts and address all these problems.

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