The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has fined two advertising agencies, Zaveri and Company and Chitra Publicity (B), ₹50 lakh each for illegally chopping trees in the corporation’s jurisdiction.
AMC’s garden department will replant a total of 4,000 saplings. The expenses for planting these trees over a period of two years will also have to be borne by these agencies.
Cut trees to made ad visible
Through a tender, Zaveri and Company Limited has been granted permission to advertise kiosks on street poles in the city.
The garden department had earlier planted trees on road dividers, but the ad agency violated tender conditions and cut down the trees grown between the dividers to make the kiosk ads visible.
The breach of tender was found during inspection and the advertisements have been ordered to be removed.
Furthermore, Chitra Publicity (B) advertising agency had also been granted permission to advertise through a gantry in the city.
However, upon inspection by the garden department, it was found that trees had been illegally cut down.
As a penalty, an amount of ₹50 lakh has been imposed on both advertising agencies for the expenses of replanting 2,000 in the respective areas.
The estate department has issued a notice to both advertising agencies to deposit the amount within seven days.