Fresh from the resounding victory in the by-elections to Warangal Lok Sabha seat, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi has begun massive publicity blitzkrieg in Hyderabad, obviously with an eye on the forthcoming Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation elections.
Hundreds of hoardings and bill boards have come up in every nook and corner of Hyderabad highlighting the achievements of TRS government headed by K Chandrasekhar Rao in the last 18 months.
The hoardings have appeared in the name of TRS, rather than the Telangana government, indicating that the advertisements are being sponsored by the ruling party.
The TRS has not left even a single hoarding empty anywhere in the city. This is besides the government advertisements at all public places, buses and crucial junctions.
Normally, advertisement agencies charge huge amounts for putting up hoardings. The charges range from Rs 2 lakh to even Rs 10 lakh per month for each hoarding depending on the location and so, one can imagine the amount the ad agencies would get normally. They, in turn, pay huge amounts as rentals to the GHMC.
But now, since the hoardings are occupied by ruling party and the subject is related to government programmes, the ad agencies cannot demand money either from the party or from the government.
Since many of these agencies have also been avoiding payment to the GHMC for quite some time, they have no option but to keep silent. They are scared of approaching the ruling party to seek money, say sources.
