In a swift response to the safety concerns raised by ‘The Hitavada’, the Zilla Parishad (ZP) and civic authorities promptly removed the illegal hoardings that were posing a severe threat to commuters on the double-decker Wardha Road flyover. ‘The Hitavada’, in its edition dated March 12, highlighted how authorities were seemingly ignoring the Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court’s strict orders regarding illegal hoardings. The report titled ‘High Court orders ignored? Hoardings by ZP on Wardha Rd flyover posing threat to commuters’ pointed out that numerous unauthorised hoardings promoting the State-level Mahalaxmi Saras Exhibition had been loosely tied to almost every electric pole on the flyover.

 

The impact was immediate. Following the publication, which featured photographs of fallen and dangling hoardings, the Zilla Parishad administration swung into action. A sort of panic set in in the administration and before the matter escalated, the agency that had affixed the hoardings, was directed to remove them immediately. By noon, teams were deployed to remove the flex banners that had been swaying dangerously over the busy traffic of Wardha Road for over three days. Motorists, who were earlier facing the risk of these heavy banners falling on them at any time, expressed relief. The High Court, through a division bench of Justice Anil S Kilor and Justice Raj D Wakode, had earlier directed the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) to strictly enforce rules and propose fines of up to Rs 5 lakh against violators.

 

The removal of these hoardings by a Government body itself reaffirms the necessity for authorities to lead by example in adhering to judicial mandates. The promotion should adhere to safer, authorised methods, ensuring that the life and limb of Nagpur’s citizens are not compromised for publicity. A release issued by Project Director, District Rural Development Agency, stated that the hoardings were put up by agency and not by Zilla Parishad directly. As soon as the violation came to the notice, directions were issued to the agency to remove the hoardings.

 

 

Qatar Airways would give a notification and flight updates on its portal in the coming days. Apart from this, there have been very low or almost no flight disruptions on the direct flight from Nagpur to Sharjah. Air Arabia operates the Sharjah flight from Nagpur’s Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport. Air Arabia operates two flights in a week - on Friday and Saturday.