Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s (NMC) Sky Sign and Advertisement Department is preparing for a hike of 30 to 40 per cent on existing billboard license fees. A formal proposal has already been submitted to Municipal Commissioner Dr Vipin Itankar to authorise the tariff revision. If approved, the revised rate structure is expected to come into effect by the end of June or the first week of July, forcing private media agencies and property holders to pay significantly higher annual recurring charges.

 

According to officials of department, this aggressive upward revision has been necessitated by a severe structural contraction in the city’s commercial advertising landscape. Currently, there are 1,005 billboards operating across the municipal limits, owned by private agencies or residential property holders. These operators are legally mandated to submit structural stability certificates every three years and pay recurring annual license fees. The current baseline rates are determined across three distinct lighting categories -- Rs 22/square meter for Non-Lit Billboards; Rs 62.50/square meter for Lit (Illuminated)

 

Billboards and Rs 176/square meter for LED/ Neon Billboards Alongside the 40 per cent tariff hike, the civic body is exploring new geographic avenues to accommodate advertising infrastructure without violating pedestrian space. An official confirmed that the department will soon float a fresh tender for 43 new billboards to be situated exclusively on vacant municipal land plots. Meanwhile, the NMC continues to restrict its own four flagship 20x20 metre billboards located at the Civil Lines Headquarters, Cotton Market ST Stand, Medical Square, and Airport T-Point strictly for non-commercial social awareness campaigns such as fire safety, anti-smoking drives and other social campaign.