Impact Follow-up: Town Hall Boards Removed

Shimla, Jan 08, 2026 Ritanjali Hastir 

After nearly a month of sustained attention and follow-up, the advertisement boards installed on the historic Town Hall have finally been taken down.

Heritage Sold, Respect Lost: Town Hall Turned Into Billboard

The correction comes after Himachal Tonite consistently raised concerns around the commercial misuse of a protected heritage structure, keeping the issue alive through continuous reporting and public scrutiny. The coverage helped maintain focus on the larger question of dignity, accountability, and respect for heritage spaces.

The removal of the boards is less about correction and more about healing a hurt. For many, the Town Hall is not just a structure of stone and history but a quiet witness to memories, gatherings, and a shared sense of belonging. Seeing it reduced to an advertising surface felt like a personal loss—a betrayal of something deeply held.

What led to this moment was not a single effort, but the collective unease of citizens who refused to look away. Voices soft and loud that kept returning to the same question: Is this how we treat what we inherit? That persistence, rooted in emotion and memory, eventually found its way into action.

This outcome reminds us that heritage survives not only through policies or permissions but also through the care people feel for it. And perhaps that is what must guide the future—respect born from connection, so that our landmarks remain places of memory, not backdrops for commerce.

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