Death-traps on rooftops

[Erik Sine]

Death-traps on rooftops

Nurul Huda

BILLBOARDS installed on rooftops in the city claimed some lives, and left several others injured, when they collapsed during stormy weather.

Unplanned and, in many cases, unauthorised billboards and neon signs on weak structures at different city corners and rooftops have been posing a threat to the lives of city dwellers. Many more accidental deaths and injuries are feared with the advent of stormy weather in Baishakh.

An unidentified young man was killed in front of the Chandrima supermarket on March 20 when a billboard fell on him. Hazrat Ali, a security guard of a CNG fuel filling station was killed in a similar accident in June 2006, and a boy died last year when a billboard feel on him in front of Shishu Park.

So far no step, as it appears, has been taken to check recurrence of such accidental deaths. The question that has been haunting us is whether some organisation will come forward to stop recurrence of billboard related accidental deaths. The responsibility for such deaths and injuries need to be fixed on priority basis, and those responsible should be asked to pay compensation.

So far about 3000 rooftop billboards, as reported, have been installed in the city. A senior police officer reportedly told The Daily Star that action could be taken against the owners of the billboards under the Negligence Act of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP). He, however, wanted to shift the responsibility to the Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) to take care of the matter.

Meanwhile, one relevant official of DCC told the daily that they could not continue the demolition drive of billboard as some of the owners had filed writs with the High Court.

But we have seen demolition drives against unauthorised structures throughout the country for recovery of government land. Sometimes, as has been reported, court cases were ignored in the larger national interest. As such, the argument of the DCC official that due to court case the authority had to keep its demolition drive suspended does not appear to be at all convincing.

There is, as it appears, a tendency among the concerned agencies to shift the responsibilities. Had there been seriousness and sincerity on the part of the concerned agencies, there could even be out of court settlement of the matter.

The DCC demolished more than 1,000 billboards and neon signs in November, 2006, on the eve of the 13th Saarc Summit. There was an initiative for assessment of the city's illegal billboards and neon signs.

But the initiative reportedly failed due to inefficiency of the DCC. There are allegations that the DCC drive against unauthorised billboards and neon signs failed also due to underhand deal between a section of corrupt officials of the organisation and a section of less known advertising agencies.

The number of companies running the trade, as has been estimated, will be more than 300. The reputed companies usually do not sign contracts with less known companies involved in the business. But companies that are not reputed sign contracts with unauthorised companies for promoting their products.

In this context, it can be recalled that The Daily Star carried an article under the headline "A new death trap?" in June 2006 after reports of billboard-related accidental deaths. The article strongly pleaded for proper compensation for billboard related accidental deaths, injuries and damage to property. But no action has been taken since then to find a solution to the issue.

What is urgently required is steps for removal of all unauthorised billboards and neon signs from city areas, and framing of a policy guidelines as regards size and structure of billboards and neon signs, keeping security interests above other considerations.

Human rights bodies or legal aid organisations can, on their own, sue those responsible for billboard related accidental deaths or injuries. There can be also Public Interest Litigation (PIL) case holding the advertising agencies and the DCC responsible for billboard related accidental deaths and damage to property.

The court on its own can also act as frequent billboard related accidental deaths and injuries, have become a security concern.