Kolkata Municipal Corporation has told outdoor advertising agencies that Durga Puja hoardings mounted on bamboo frames cannot be displayed before October 3, introducing a deadline that will affect the city’s large seasonal advertising market. Agencies that install advertisements on the frames during September will be required to pay fees at KMC rates, according to a report by Times of India – Kolkata.
The civic body issued the direction to outdoor advertising agencies on Wednesday. The report said agencies were also asked to remove the advertisements within a week after Dashami, the final day of the Durga Puja festival.
The fee exemption will apply only to flex advertisements installed in the following month, according to the report. Advertisements put up during September will not qualify for the exemption and will be charged according to the municipal corporation’s existing rates. The exemption was announced by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, as cited in the report.
The KMC’s instructions distinguish between conventional flex advertisements and LED displays. An owner of an outdoor advertising agency told the newspaper that LED advertisements would not be exempt from municipal fees even when installed in October. This means that the timing of installation alone will not determine whether an advertisement is liable for payment; the advertising format will also matter.
The civic direction also places a height limit on the temporary structures. According to the report, advertisements mounted on the bamboo frames cannot exceed 22 feet. The restriction applies to the physical advertising installations associated with the Puja season, though the supplied report does not provide further details on how the height will be measured or enforced.
The seasonal advertising trade linked to Durga Puja is estimated by sources cited in the report to be worth nearly Rs 150 crore in Kolkata. The scale of the business gives the KMC’s instructions significance beyond individual hoardings: the timing, format and fee treatment of advertisements will affect agencies, advertisers and the corporation’s municipal revenue administration during one of the city’s busiest festival periods.
The directive also creates a defined removal timeline for the temporary advertising structures. Agencies have been told to take down the advertisements within a week of Dashami, limiting the period for which the bamboo-frame hoardings can remain in public view after the festival. The report did not specify penalties for agencies that fail to comply with the deadline, exceed the height limit or install advertisements without paying the applicable fees.
