After nine failed bids, Patiala MC to issue fresh tender for pole, kiosk ads

Ravneet Singh

Patiala, October 23

The Municipal Corporation (MC), after having failed to allocate a tender for advertisement poles and kiosks nine times, will now be issuing a fresh tender after revision of the reserve price. The corporation has failed to allocate the tender for years despite having reduced the rates.

A committee comprising MC officials has been formed to review the tendering process and do away with the lapses.

The MC has numerous locations for allocating advertisement poles and kiosks in the city, but these locations are not regularly allocated. A lack of demand in certain areas, coupled with certain problems faced by the allottees due to illegal affixation of flex boards by political leaders and parties has led to the corporation's failure to issue the tender.

An MC insider said the number of pole kiosks has been reduced from 1,756 to 500 while the number of unipoles has been increased. Number of mini-poles and bus-stop advertisement sites have also been reduced.

The insider said, "Some areas — including SST Nagar, parts of the Sangrur Road, Nabha Road and Bhadson Road etc. — fail to attract businesses interested in advertisements. This time, the corporation has conducted a survey and decided to implement requisite changes. The proposal will be discussed with and passed by the Director, Local bodies."

Corporation Commissioner Aaditya Uppal said the MC will float the tender for the 10th time. "We held a number of meetings with the stakeholders. A committee comprising the joint commissioner and others was also formed for a review. This time, we have increased the per-square-foot rate and are expecting an increase in revenue."

When asked about the corporation's activity to strictly check illegal advertisements, Uppal said the corporation took out a drive and removed many illegal advertisements from the city. Asked about measures being taken to ensure compliance of the law, he said, "We will do a weekly analysis of the advertisements from now on."

from The Tribune https://ift.tt/CBDPFa2