Mumbai: BMC has taken objection to the construction of what it claims is an oversized hoarding on Tilak Nagar railway premises along Santacruz Chembur Link Road (SCLR). Civic officials claimed that Central Railway had granted permission to increase the size of the hoarding, which was previously 40×40 sq ft, in April.
But, when contacted, CR said that the hoarding size will be 40×40 sq ft, as per the July 10 Supreme Court order which held that the railways will have to abide by BMC’s policy on size restrictions when granting permission to hoardings on its land in the city.

However, BMC’s assistant municipal commissioner of L ward, in a letter to the CR divisional railway manager, said that during routine inspection on Wednesday, a civic team noticed that work on increasing the size of the hoarding on Tilak Nagar railway premises along SCLR was underway. “We have requested CR to ensure that the hoarding size be as per the Supreme Court order. If the advertising firm concerned is constructing it beyond the permissible size, the work should be stopped,” said a civic official.
On July 10, the Supreme Court had reiterated BMC’s stand on keeping hoarding sizes in the city at 40×40 sq ft. In a meeting later held by BMC with railway officials, the same was conveyed to them, said a BMC official.
BMC does not allow hoardings larger than 40×40 sq ft as a policy owing to the city’s topography as well as its climatic and wind conditions and proximity to the sea.
Allowing oversized hoardings would mean larger damage in case of an untoward incident, as was seen in the Ghatkopar billboard crash on May 13, which had claimed 17 lives. After the billboard crash, BMC had issued a notice to the railway authorities under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, directing it to remove any hoarding that exceeded the permissible size and listed 36 such errant structures.
BMC had said there were 45 hoardings on railway land which were above the permissible 40×40 sq feet limit, of which two crashed at Ghatkopar. Following the tragedy, 14 other hoardings were removed off which eight were along Eastern Express Highway while six were on Tilak Bridge in Dadar. These hoardings were of Ego Media, the company which had erected the Ghatkopar hoarding. As per BMC’s policy, an advertising agency has to submit a hoarding stability certificate every two years. If not submitted, after a second appeal, BMC will ask the agencies to pull down the hoardings concerned.