Visakhapatnam: The unipole hoardings erected recently at prime locations of the city have sparked a new debate over safety among the residents in the city. Some of these poles were pitched in the medians, distracting the attention of the motorists. As Visakhapatnam is more prone to frequent weather systems, the attention is now on the poles withstanding the force of gales during depressions and low pressures.
During Cyclone Hudhud, winds gusted at nearly 200 km/hour. The recent collapse of a large unipole hoarding in Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad at the expense of a few cars has exacerbated the fear. These hoardings, which are currently carrying advertisements of the ongoing Krishna Pushkaralu, can be seen dotting the sky-scape in Dwarakanagar, Siripuram, etc. According to the GVMC officials, the unipole hoarding project was the first ‘public-private partnership’ (PPP) project signed many years ago and the hoardings were planned at about 94 junctions in the city.
GVMC chief city planner D. Venkata Ratnam said: “We asked the private agency, which was putting up these hoardings, to submit a structural stability certificate and adhere to all the safety standards. We’re expecting the report in a day or two. Even after they submit the structural stability certificate, the private agency would be held responsible for any untoward incident,” he added.
Gudivada Ramakrishna, a resident of Siripuram, said he was pretty much surprised to see these unipole hoardings at the medians. “If you observe the advertising boards in other cities, they are mostly located near the corners of the traffic signals. But these poles have sprung up in the middle of the roads to catch all attention. The officials should ensure of the safety of the citizens.” Professor at the Department of Civil Engineering of Andhra University and Dean, Engineering Works, Dr. K. Srinivasa Rao said that as per his observation, the poles might be safe. “As the height of the basement increases, it could make the poles more vulnerable to gusty winds. But these unipoles in Visakhapatnam were erected at ground-level and as per my observation I think they are safe,” Dr. Srinivasa Rao added.
