Chennai authorities have ordered the removal of unauthorised hoardings across the city after anti-corruption organisation Arappor Iyakkam identified 23 structures that it said could pose a safety risk during strong winds this monsoon.
The organisation filed a complaint with the Chief Minister’s Office, citing oversized and improperly installed hoardings along arterial roads. The structures were identified in Triplicane, Thousand Lights, Nungambakkam, Adyar, Alwarpet, Teynampet, Saidapet, Guindy, Perungudi, Taramani and Arumbakkam.
Arappor Iyakkam convener Jayaram Venkatesan said hoardings are permitted only up to 33 feet from the ground under the applicable rules. One of the structures identified by the organisation was around 80 feet tall, he said. The organisation alleged that several hoardings had been installed in violation of the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules, 2023.
The complaint said the identified violations included hoardings twice the legally permitted size, structures erected on fourth floors even though the rules prohibit installation beyond the second floor, and hoardings projecting over public roads and pavements. It also cited prohibited double-decker hoardings.
Arappor Iyakkam said it had visited each location, photographed the structures and recorded their positions using Google Maps. It said each hoarding had been checked against the specific rule it allegedly violated, while clarifying that the 23 structures represented only a sample and that the government needed to verify all hoardings in the city.
The organisation’s complaint focused on the structural stability of large hoardings and the danger they could pose to commuters and other road users during strong winds. It also called for accountability involving both officials responsible for enforcement and advertising agencies that install unauthorised structures.
According to the complaint, Greater Chennai Corporation assistant engineers are expected to inspect hoardings under their jurisdiction every month, while senior officials are required to conduct random inspections. Arappor Iyakkam alleged that these mechanisms had not prevented what it described as blatant violations.
Municipal Administration and Water Supply Secretary Gagandeep Singh Bedi held a review meeting on Friday and ordered Corporation officials to remove unauthorised hoardings in the city. The order follows the organisation’s demand for immediate action, with the monsoon already under way.
The removal directive places enforcement responsibility on Corporation officials, while the complaint has also raised questions about how hoardings are approved, inspected and monitored across Chennai’s road network.
