Jackpot-MC Patiala earned around Rs 37 lacs in just few days
Kanwar Inder Singh/ royalpatiala.in
Punjab elections proved ‘blessing in disguise’ for municipal corporation Patiala. Municipal Corporation Patiala has earned around Rs 37 lacs in just around two weeks period.
This year election commission has banned on rallies, pad yatras, imposed restrictions on other election related outdoor campaign programs. Simultaneously, election commission has allowed the parties, candidates to opt other new methods for campaigning like on social media, door to door campaigning, hoardings, outdoor advertisements etc.
Outdoor campaigning by candidates, parties proved rewarding for Municipal Corporation as they earned handsome amount from a defunct inventory, as normally only few clients take purchased this media in election time. After the announcement of polls, all the key parties have taken some of the unipoles for them. But after the withdrawal of the nomination date (February 4, 2022) to the polling date (February 20,2022) most of the unipoles of MC, street light poles, all ganteries were taken by the political parties, candidates.
As per municipal corporation officials “parties, candidates took almost all the main, key points of outdoor advertising. Out of around 1750 street light poles, 1056 poles were taken by the candidates of both the Patiala urban and rural assembly constituencies. Municipal Corporation Patiala have five gantries at the entry point of Patiala on Patiala-Chandigarh, Patiala-Sirhind etc and all few were sold to these political parties, candidates to display their messages for voters. Similarly, the local Municipal Corporation has total 83 unipoles for advertising in the Municipal Corporation jurisdiction. Out of these 55 unipoles are with a contractor and 28 unipoles are with the Municipal Corporation, Patiala. The MC is getting the monthly fixed rent for those 55 unipoles from the contractor and rest 28 were sold by the local MC to the political parties and candidates who fought assembly elections in just concluded polls.”
Jackpot-MC Patiala earned around Rs 37 lacs in just few days. The official further added that “this is for the first time that election commission has allowed the political parties and candidates to go for outdoor advertising and this helps the local bodies department to earn handsome amount as the rates, numbers are fixed by the election commission and no there was no scope of bargaining on the costs for any political party or candidate as they remained same for everyone.”
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