BMC crackdown on kabutarkhanas; feeding pigeons now costs ₹500

MUMBAI: BMC fines ₹500 for feeding pigeons after state crackdown, collecting ₹55,700 so far. Concerns over health issues linked to pigeon droppings persist.

MUMBAI: Feeding chana or grains to pigeons now comes at the cost of a ₹500 penalty imposed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) after the state government directed the civic body to take strict actions against kabutarkhanas (pigeon feedings spots) across the city. Since July 3, when the issue was brought up in the legislative council, the BMC has collected a total of ₹55,700 in fines across the city’s 24 wards.

Mumbai, India - July 14, 2025: Vilas Pawar, BMC official stationed at Kabutarkhana near GPO keeps a watchful eye, to impose fines on those feeding pigeons, as dozens of birds flock to the area in Mumbai, India, on Monday, July 14, 2025. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/ Hindustan Times) (Hindustan Times)

Since the crackdown began, the BMC has fined 108 people across 44 kabutarkhanas, and 49 locations in the city for feeding pigeons. Dadar’s kabutarkhana in ward G (north) recorded the highest number of cases at 16, leading to a total of ₹7,700 in fines. Next came ward P (east) in Malad East where ₹7500 was collected from 15 people.

In ward A on Mint Road, a nuisance detector, who is a civic official appointed to detect acts of public nuisance, said, “A couple of days back many people were fined and there was a lot of noise created.” He added that the police had to intervene to inform the public about the new government orders. “Now, there is a lot of awareness and the fines are deterring people from feeding,” said the civic official.

Despite the imposed fines for feeding pigeons, the civic body is struggling to curb the practice entirely. A senior civic official from ward D said that solid waste management officials and nuisance detection officials could only oversee kabutarkhanas for 12 hours. He said, “They are deployed from 7am to 7pm but people come at 5:30am and 6:30am and feed the pigeons for religious reasons. How can one monitor when civic officials are not present? It is up to people to stop feeding.” According to the civic official, the ₹500 fine was part of the solid waste management byelaws aiming to avoid unhygienic conditions on roads.

According to BMC officials the crackdown against kabutarkhanas began after residents of Dadar had concerns about its large kabutarkhana, the decades-long iconic landmark, and the largest pigeon feeding spot in the city. In recent months, locals raised numerous complaints about respiratory illnesses linked to pigeon droppings and air pollution caused by feathers. In response, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena’s (MNS) environmental wing launched a campaign in February calling for the closure of the Dadar kabutarkhana.

The issue was raised in the Legislative Council by Shiv Sena MLC Manisha Kayande, who cited studies linking pigeon droppings and feathers to lung infections and other respiratory ailments. In response, Industries Minister Uday Samant stated that there are 51 designated pigeon feeding spots across Mumbai, and assured the House that the government would direct the BMC to shut them down immediately.

A day after Samant’s statement civic officials on July 4 demolished illegal portions of the Dadar kabutarkhana, including the netting fence around the circular enclosure where pigeons flock in the middle of traffic, and a covered plastic shed nearby. Civic officials removed sacks of pigeon feed and cleaned up the circle, but feeders returned within a few hours, bringing the pigeons back with them.