Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation is facing allegations of recurring revenue loss because a new hoarding policy has not been implemented for six years, while advertising permissions continue to be issued under a 2020 administrative resolution. Councillors raised the issue during a general body meeting, also alleging that repeated cancellations of tender processes and the growth of unauthorised billboards are weakening municipal control over the city’s public spaces.
The objections were raised during a discussion on the corporation’s advertising policy and hoarding permissions. BJP councillor Pankaj Deshmukh questioned the repeated cancellation of tender procedures and said the corporation was losing significant revenue every year as a result. He called for an immediate new resolution to establish an updated policy and regulate the permission process.
The dispute concerns both the financial and physical management of advertising structures across Vasai-Virar. According to the report, permissions are still being granted under a 2020 resolution even though a revised policy has not been introduced. The report does not provide the total revenue loss, the number of cancelled tenders or the current number of permissions issued under the older framework.
Councillor Pradeep Pawar said the number of hoardings in the city had exceeded permissible limits and was contributing to visual clutter. He specifically referred to the Ambadi Road area, where he alleged that a large number of unauthorised advertising boards had been erected along a major road.
The issue also raised questions about whether the corporation has a reliable inventory of advertising structures. BJP opposition leader Manoj Patil said large hoardings had been installed on both private and public land, but the corporation did not have an official survey report identifying how many were authorised and how many were unauthorised.
Patil also objected to the advertising policy being handled only at the administrative level. He said elected representatives should be consulted before a new framework is finalised, placing the dispute within a broader question of how municipal decisions over public-facing infrastructure and revenue-generating assets are made.
The councillor further asked whether a joint committee involving the revenue department, police and municipal corporation had been formed in accordance with directions of the high court. The report does not state whether the corporation or the other departments confirmed the committee’s formation, nor does it record a response from officials to the allegations made during the meeting.
The immediate administrative questions are whether the corporation will adopt a fresh advertising resolution, complete a citywide survey of hoardings, and restart a legally compliant tender process. Until those steps are taken, the council discussion leaves unresolved both the scale of the alleged revenue loss and the extent of unauthorised advertising across Vasai-Virar.
