HC approves HAL’s plea for Aero-India hoardings

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Thursday permitted the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to let Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) put up temporary advertisement structures to carry out a publicity campaign for Aero India -2023, which will be held from February 13 to 17 here The structures would include hoardings and signage.

They would be made from wood and cotton and not non-biodegradable material. The BBMP had filed an interlocutory application (IA) for the court to allow HAL to put up the publicity material in key junctions in the state.

The civic body had argued that Aero India-2023 was “a prestigious international event” and as such would draw international audiences, who might find it difficult to navigate during the event in the absence of any directions. The BBMP also cited the precedent that a division bench had similarly allowed permission for promotional material during Aero India-2019.

However, Justice Prasanna B Varale of the division bench directed the BBMP to file a compliance report in less than three weeks to prove that the civic body had acted on the court’s previous directions about what measures it had taken to curtail illegal hoardings in Bengaluru. The Aero India -2023 will be held at Air Force Station, Yelahanka, and organised by the Ministry of Defense and the Karnataka government.