The Coimbatore Consumer Cause has raised objections to the State government’s amendment to the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules, 2023, which permits illuminated advertisements on road medians.

In a notice to the Secretary of the Municipal Administration and Water Supply (MAWS) Department, the organisation’s secretary, K. Kathirmathiyon, said the amendment issued through G.O. No. 3 dated January 7, 2025, was not publicly available and allows 1.0 m × 0.6 m advertisements on medians, previously banned by the government and courts.

“The amendment came to our notice only when advertising firms approached local bodies seeking permission to erect such displays. We, then, issued a contempt notice to the Chennai Corporation Commissioner and the MAWS Secretary after learning that Chennai Corporation was considering allowing advertisements on medians,” said Mr. Kathirmathiyon.

The consumer body recalled in its notice its public interest litigation filed in 2019 in the Madras High Court after a 23-year-old woman in Chennai was killed when a digital banner on a centre median fell on her. The petition had challenged Rule 5 of the 2011 Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules, which allowed digital banners on medians. While the case was pending, the State government officially issued the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules, 2023, and assured the Court that Rule 339(5)(e) prohibited digital banners and placards on centre medians. Based on this assurance, the court disposed of the petition.

Mr. Kathirmathiyon noted that the Indian Roads Congress (IRC) prohibits advertisements on medians as they distract motorists and compromise safety. Referring to previous High Court orders in 2011 and 2017 that required adherence to IRC norms and removal of median advertisements, the consumer body said the amendment amounts to contempt of court and sought to withdraw and remove all advertisements from medians.