Devan Ramachandran, J.

1. Kerala, is again flooded with unauthorised flex boards/advertisement boards/banners/flags, but Government of Kerala is doing nothing against this, bewails the learned Amicus Curiae, Shri.Harish Vasudevan.

2. The State has done everything possible and it is now the Secretaries and Field Staff of the various Local Self Government Institutions who are fully responsible; because the Government has issued specific directives/circulars empowering them to remove all the boards and to take all necessary steps, including by registration of Criminal Cases, against the perpetrators of such unauthorised action and therefore, that, if they fail to act, then they should be made fully accountable," retorts Shri.K.V.Sohan, the learned State Attorney.

3. In the above scenario, I am now compelled to issue further orders in this case; particularly since the Amicus Curiae has today filed an additional report, dated 26.02.2019, wherein, he unequivocally says that after 30.11.2018,which was the earlier deadline fixed by this Court, the menace of unauthorised boards/flags/banners has now resurfaced with renewed vigour. He says that the main perpetrators of this are the political parties, film entities and such other vested interests; and he shows from the photographs, exhibited along with his report, that the threat is now again assuming enormous proportions.

4. The effort of this Court, in controlling this horrible menace, commenced by the first interim order, dated 27.07.2018, and thereafter, I have issued 10 more orders. In each of these orders, I have been issuing directions to the Competent Authorities, including the State of Kerala, to issue directives and circulars to the various Local Self Government Institutions, to control, regulate and remove unauthorised boards/banners/flags and each of these orders were implicitly obeyed by the Competent Authorities of the Government, by issuance of either Government Orders or Circulars.

5.1 notice from the materials on record, that there are at least five such Orders/Circulars issued by the Government, in each of which, the absolute inviolability of the need to remove these unauthorised boards/banners/flags have been restated and reiterated.

6. The State Police Chief and the Chief Secretary of the Government of Kerala have also filed independent affidavits, again affirming that this menace is now becoming uncontrolled. In fact, the Chief Secretary says in his affidavit, dated 28.01.2019, that more than 3.5 lakh unauthorised boards have been removed from all over Kerala and that a Government Order, dated 21.01.2019, copy of which is on record as Ext.R17(f), has been, therefore, issued specifically authorising the Secretaries of the Local Self Government Institutions to act as per the directions of this Court and to remove all unauthorised boards and to collect the revenue lost therefrom from the concerned persons/entities.

7. In the backdrop of all these, it is certainly amazing that unauthorised boards have again proliferated, indicating without doubt that the concerned Authorities have now disregarded orders of this Court as well as the Circulars/directives of the Government. This is a very serious situation which warrants immediate action from this Court; otherwise it will not be possible to now control this hazard any further.

8. Shri.K.V.Sohan, learned State Attorney, takes the position that the Government have issued necessary circulars and orders, sufficiently empowering the Secretaries and Field Staff of the Local Self Government Institutions; and therefore, that it is their obligation to act effectively. He also says, as is clear from various circulars/orders, that they have been sufficiently warned that if they are found to fail in their duties, they would be proceeded against very stringently. He, therefore, prays that this Court now issue specific directions to such Authorities to act as per the earlier interim orders of this Court as also the directives/circulars al