Kerala High Court Reinstates Its Directions On Use Of Flex Boards In State

The Kerala High Court has reiterated the extensive set of directions it had issued last year on the issue of the use of plastics/flex boards in the State. 

A Division Bench of Chief Justice S. Manikumar and Justice Shaji P. Chaly recalled the directions in a petition challenging the State's inaction in taking effective measures to prohibit the manufacture, storage, sale and usage of Poly Vinyl Chloride (PVC) Flex. 

Advocate M. Kannan appearing for the petitioner argued that Poly Vinyl Chloride is the most environmentally hazardous consumer material ever produced. In the process of its manufacture, toxic gases are produced. It is a non-biodegradable material, cannot be recycled, and therefore, is of no resale value.

Standing Counsel Deepu Lal Mohan for the Election Commission of India submitted that a similar SLP is pending on the file of the Supreme Court. 

The Court recalled that it had issued a cluster of guidelines on WP(C) No. 5218 of 2012 and connected matters on this issue. 

Directions Issued:

• All the unauthorised arches, display boards, hoardings, placards, and banners with poles or frames, etc., fixed to and/or dug into the ground, which abuts the highways, public streets, and pedestrian pavements, shall forthwith be removed. No poles or frames or structures for arches, boards, placards, hoardings, display boards or banners shall be erected on any highway, public road, public passage or pedestrian pathway or pavement. Holes caused on pavements and roads, by reason of erection of frames, poles, structures, placards, hoardings, displaying boards, banners, etc., shall forthwith be repaired.
• The Secretaries to the Government, LSGD, PWD, State Highways and Heads of Departments, under the respective Acts, extracted above, shall issue appropriate instructions for effective implementation of the above said directions.
• The District Collectors and the Secretaries of the aforementioned departments shall oversee the implementation of the directions issued by this Court, issue suitable orders, and take appropriate action against the erring officers.
• The Principal Secretaries to the Government, Public Works Department, Local Self Government Institutions, Government of Kerala, are directed to issue appropriate instructions to the field officers, to remove the nailing, in other words, de-nailing, make trees nail free and thereby, remove all the unauthorised signboards, advertisements, pamphlets etc. The District Collectors shall act in accordance with the orders issued in that regard.
• The Executive Engineer (Roads) or Executive Engineer (National Highways) of the Public Works Department, who are designated as Highway Authorities as per the provisions of the Kerala Highway Protection Act, 1999, are directed to identify those structures, hoardings, advertisement boards and displays etc., endangering road safety, and take immediate steps for removal thereof, under Section 22 of the said Act.
• The Project Directors / National Highways Authority of India are directed to take appropriate action, to effectively implement the directions.
• The Secretaries of Municipal Corporations and Municipalities in the State, under Section 275 of the Kerala Municipalities Act, 1994, are directed to take steps, to identify and unauthorised hoardings, banners, flex boards, temporary arches, posters etc.
• Likewise, the Secretaries of the Panchayats are directed to take steps to identify and remove unauthorised hoardings, banners, flex boards, temporary arches, posters, and other similar structures.
• The concerned Secretaries are directed to supervise the dismantling of outdoor billboards, unauthorised hoardings etc., which causes inconvenience to the commuters.
• The Secretaries of the concerned Panchayat under Section 209C of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act, 1994, shall provide necessary assistance to the NHAI for removal of illegal hoardings, banners, flexes, temporary arches, posters etc.
• In the event, the Municipal Authorities/officials, who come across the cases of breaches, not attracting any of the Municipal Laws, shall forthwith report the same to the District Collectors. On such informationbeing received by the District Collectors, necessary action for removal of such nuisance shall be taken in a time-bound manner.
• Since, in the State of Kerala, certain notified portions of the National Highways are maintained by the National Highways Authority of India the outdoor advertising boards which cause a distraction to traffic on such stretches of the Highways shall be identified by the concerned Project Director of NHAI and appropriate remedial action be taken, in accordance with law.
• The Kerala State Road Safety Authority, constituted under the provisions of Kerala Road Safety Authority Act, 2007, to coordinate action on areas related to road safety among various departments, advise the Government on road safety policy, prescribe and enforce road safety standards and procedures, formulate and implement schemes/projects and programmes relating to road safety and is directed to conduct a detailed study, with the help of various District Road Safety Councils in the State, as regards the harmful effects caused on account of the outdoor hoardings/billboards, installed at various National/ State Highways and elsewhere, and submit a report to the Chief Secretary, to facilitate the State Government to regulate the hazardous outdoor hoardings/billboards.
• The Road Safety Commissioner/Transport Commissioner, who is the ex officio under Section 9 of the Kerala Road Safety Authority Act, 2007, is directed to look into the damaging effect of roadside advertisements in the light of 'Policy on Roadside Advertisements' published by the Indian Road Congress, 1992.
• Cluster of wires on trees and electrical poles, be regulated by the statutory authorities and the District Collectors are directed to take appropriate action for removal as per the existing rules.
• The Commissioner of Police or the Superintendent of Police, as the case may be, shall issue directions to the concerned police personnel, who are entrusted with the job of night patrolling, including the beat marshals, to keep a constant vigil, for preventing the activity of erection/display of illegal hoardings, banners, flexes, temporary arches, posters etc., during night time.
• The Commissioner of Police/District Police Chief shall provide necessary assistance to the Highways Authority under Sections 44 and 15(2) of the Act, 1999 for removal of the unauthorised structures, hoardings, advertisement boards and displays, endangering road safety.
• Whenever an action is proposed to be taken by the authorities, as stated above, the concerned Assistant Commissioner / Deputy Superintendent of Police shall extend adequate police protection and police help to the local authorities, in the process.
• Report regarding removal of the above-mentioned unauthorised structures, outdoor hoardings / billboards, be submitted by the competent authorities under the respective enactments, to the District Collectors, every month.

Finding that these directions are squarely applicable to the case on hand, the Court disposed of the plea in terms of the abovesaid judgment.

Senior Government Pleader V. Tekchand, Standing Counsel T. Naveen for State Pollution Control Board, Advocates Philip J. Vettickattu, V.A. Satheesh, Aney Paul and V.T. Madhavanunni appeared for the respondents. 

Case Title: B.S. Syamkumar v. State of Kerala & Ors.

Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (Ker) 126

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