How long will we allow outside businesses to ruin Goa’s skyline with illegal hoardings?

Goa’s heritage buildings, its beautiful architecture, and even the outer facades of old shops in heritage areas have got completely ruined due to the haphazard and often totally illegal manner in which publicity and advertising hoardings are allowed to be installed.

While this has happened, the municipalities and the panchayats have looked the other way as Goa’s beauty got totally destroyed.

Goa’s beauty got destroyed and Goans are empty-handed

All resources of the State and the land ultimately belong to the people. Outside companies in order to sell their business, hotels and products are constructing hoarding in violation of the Goa Prevention of Defacement of Property Act, 1988. As per the Act, the State Government has made it a “cognisable and non-bailable” offence giving powers to police to arrest the offenders. 

How many people, have been booked and arrested as per the decision of the Goa cabinet? Is there even one case?

The Goa cabinet has also decided that anybody causing defacement to public property will have to pay for the loss faced due to it. How many offenders have been booked and arrested? The term property has been clearly defined and includes any building, hut, monument, statue, water pipeline, public road, structure and wall including compound wall, tree, fence, post, pole or any other erection.

The majority of hoardings block, alter and spoil each of the places mentioned in the act, making our Goa look uglier. 

Political parties and politicians add to this visual pollution before the elections 

But does all this matter to politicians in Goa? Does the visual pollution that defaces Goa matter to them? Before elections, there is a rush on the part of political parties to book hoardings (the larger the budget, the more the hoardings). How do political parties get away with such a gross violation? When laws are made in the Assembly, all MLAs are present when these bills are passed to become laws. One does not recall, or even find, an instance of a single lawmaker in Goa, having asked for a calling attention or an adjournment motion in the recent past, in the Assembly to implement laws against illegal hoardings. And before we go on to state how big companies get away with flouting the law on defacement of public properties, political parties and elected representatives should be asked what have they done to protect Goa and stop it from becoming a dump for an ugly spread of hoardings.

Goans should reject parties and candidates who do not follow the law on defacement of public property. And when they come, Goans should tell them to remove hoarding of themselves and parties if they want people’s votes. 

Has there been any inquiry on how panchayats and other bodies give permission?

Sometimes the agencies show permissions and NOCs are given by panchayats and other local bodies. But does anyone question, on what basis have these NOCs and permissions have been given? Like in so many other areas, there are reports of underhand deals and payments made, based on which the skyline of Goa is being allowed to be destroyed. 

Will you like your home, drawing room, garden to be destroyed by any ugliness? Then why are we tolerating our towns and villages getting spoilt? Goans and Goan institutions should not be a party to the destruction of their own land

That is not the only law that has been violated. These hoardings are spoiling our tourism spots and places and even though there are guidelines and regulations, the hoarding menace has entered even our pristine tourism spots. The guidelines state that to maintain the State’s authenticity and aesthetics, no promotional site is permitted on tourism spots, heritage sites, and other key areas as per the Land Development and Building Construction Regulations, 2010. But you only have to go to Calangute Candolim and Baga. It is ingested with hoardings that cover homes, shops, heritage houses and other places of interests. Hoardings also cover entrances of beaches and roads.

In early 2021, 1400 illegal hoardings were identified?

Based on the directions of the High Court, the government had formed two committees, one for each district to identify illegal hoardings and to submit a report to it. Authorities have identified 1,400 illegal hoardings in the State along the National Highways, State highways and major district roads and have asked the public and stakeholders to inspect the list of illegal hoardings and submit their objections within seven days.

Pay money, take NOC. Is that the rule?

The outdoor advertising agencies association, however, maintained that in municipal and panchayat areas that have clearance from these local bodies are therefore not illegal. But are the local bodies themselves aware of the Goa Public Defacement Act? Do they do the sufficient checks before NOCs are given or do they follow the principle of “pay and take”- pay money, take NOC.

The hoardings especially on highways, are a distraction. Violate the Motor Vehicle Act

In most countries in the world, there are very strict rules concerning hoardings from a safety point of view. There is zero tolerance for this since hoardings prove to be a big safety hazard. Why do the authorities in Goa not realise this? Many officers from the Goa traffic police, have confirmed that courts have ordered hoardings to be taken down in the past as these cause distractions to the drivers leading to accidents and hence are in violation of the MV Act, 1988. 

Signages are another menace. 

The beauty of ancient heritage structures, in Panjim especially, is totally ruined. Today in Panjim unregulated signage is creating visual clutter, often altering the facades of historic buildings, and sometimes pose a threat to pedestrians and motorists. Tourists also suffer because important signages are covered by ugly haphazard signages. A few years ago, the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) had approved a proposal for a well-planned comprehensive signage system. The Charles Correa Foundation (CCF), was asked to design signages uniformly and also tasked with drafting a policy. This year it was announced that new signages would be finally put up maintaining the ancient heritage uniformity. That is yet to be implemented.

If we are serious about keeping our homes clean and clutter-free, the same seriousness should be displayed for our towns and villages. Day by day our towns and villages look like crowded suburbs of metros, the uniqueness of our architecture is buried under a mountain of hoardings.

There are laws but no one follows them including our local bodies. Removing hoardings that affect our heritage, architecture and safety have to be guaranteed by anyone wanting votes. But more importantly, anyone having a genuine love for the uniqueness and beauty of Goa.