Modi hoardings are in public interest, so feels AMC

The AMC has donated some sites reserved for public interest advertising like conveying information on the anti-polio vaccination drive, tax rebates and AIDS control measures and safeguards, from which the AMC earns a sizeable revenue, to organisations such as the Karnavati Club and the Ahmedabad District Co-operative Bank.

Though these parties are putting up congratulatory hoardings, political bosses at the AMC, believe that these have been issued in "public interest".

Officials agree that instead of letting out hoardings to private parties at token rates, the AMC could have utilised these spaces for informing people about the ongoing interest rebate scheme on unpaid property tax. "This would have led to a jump in the collection of tax dues," said a senior official.

Madhuben Patel, chairperson of the AMC Standing Committee, admitted that spaces were given at token rates to these parties and the committee passed a resolution to this effect some time ago. "But the AMC will not lose any revenue on this score as we have collected the token fee from them," Patel said, adding that no commercial site had been given to these parties. “After all, it was given to them to greet the chief minister in public interest.”

A senior official, moreover, agreed that the AMC would never agree to give its space to anyone else, say, the Congress, for congratulating the UPA government for waiving loans worth Rs 60,000 crore to farmers in the Union budget for 2008-09. "Public interest" has to be politically coloured to become eligible for such concessions, he said on conditions of anonymity.