Monsoon Safety Drive: DK District Administration Orders Immediate Removal of Illegal Flex Banners and Hoardings from Road Dividers

Share

Share

Share

Share

Email

Share

Mangaluru : With the monsoon intensifying across Dakshina Kannada district, the District Administration has issued a stringent official order directing all urban local bodies and gram panchayats to immediately clear dangerous and unauthorized flex boards, banners, and buntings from roads and dividers. Signed by the Deputy Commissioner and Chairperson of the District Disaster Management Authority on June 9, 2026, the directive highlights the severe risks posed by strong winds and heavy rainfall. These illegal temporary structures are highly prone to collapsing onto oncoming traffic and unsuspecting pedestrians, which could trigger major accidents and result in the loss of human lives.

The official intervention comes in the wake of numerous public grievances lodged with the district administration. The pressing issue was also thoroughly deliberated upon during recent high-level sessions of the District Road Safety Committee and the District Disaster Management Authority. Local bodies have been instructed to invoke the Karnataka Open Places (Prevention of Disfigurement) Act, 1981, and the Karnataka Municipalities Act to penalize offenders. Under this statutory framework, municipal and panchayat authorities are empowered to dismantle these illegal advertisements and impose heavy fines or criminal penalties on the entities responsible for erecting them.

Exercising powers vested under Sections 30 and 34 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the Deputy Commissioner has ordered local bodies to execute this clearing operation on a top-priority basis. Authorities must submit an official compliance report, supplemented with photographic evidence, directly to the District Disaster Management Authority. Furthermore, local officials have been told to maintain a strict vigil to prevent the reappearance of any promotional materials on road dividers. The order warns that any laxity, delay, or failure on the part of the designated officers that results in an accident will invite strict disciplinary and legal action under the provisions of the Disaster Management Act.