Illegal hoardings are to make way for as many as 50 LED billboards in Kochi, which will be installed in different parts of the city.

A fully digital billboard installed at the Kadavanthra Metro Station for trial run.

In an effort to enhance Kochi’s aesthetic appeal and improve safety, the corporation is planning to remove illegal and hazardous hoardings and install 50 LED billboards in Kochi.

There are two models of these digital billboards—semi-static boards (installed at Kacheripady, Woodlands Junction, and opposite Central Square Mall) and fully dynamic boards (installed at High Court Junction, Menaka, and Kadavanthra).

In March, the Kerala High Court had termed unauthorised hoardings, flags, festoons, and other items in public places as illegal.

D Dhanuraj, Chairman of Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR), in speaking to Anna Jose of The New Indian Express (TNIE), said that the LED billboards in Kochi will be a source of revenue for the corporation.

“The initiative (LED billboards in Kochi) can help in revenue generation. However, the decisions on pricing and guidelines should be transparent. Moreover, not everyone, particularly smaller companies, may be able to access the advertising boards,”

he is quoted as saying.

Read the full article by The New Indian Express here.

Views expressed by the author are personal and need not reflect or represent the views of the Centre for Public Policy Research.