Six media owners empanelled to develop street furniture for Commonwealth Games

Beautification of Delhi tops the priority list of the Delhi Government. With this view, Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation (DTTDC), on behalf of Public Works Department (PWD) and Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD), has invited six agencies, including Laqshya Media, JC Decaux, Graphisads and Hindustan Publicity, to participate in the bidding process for installation and maintenance of street furniture on roads leading to the Commonwealth Games venues.

To be finished within the few months left before the commencement of the games in October, the project will need an investment of Rs 50 crore approximately. The ad rights will be given away for seven years only.

According to a Delhi based outdoor expert, there can be two types of street furniture in a city - one with ad panels and one without them. The duration of such tenders need to be longer as the space available for ads is much smaller than those available with larger formats - and so are the revenues. In order to earn decent returns on street furniture projects, it is important to keep the duration as long as 20 years.

Mukesh Gupta, managing director, Graphisads, says that though the opportunity is big, it will be a challenge to finish it as there is hardly any time left for the CWG to begin. "There needs to be strong quality check for the street furniture. Only then brands from across the product categories will be interested in advertising," he opines.

The bids are due for submission on April 8.