BMC issues stop work notices to 296 sites

BMC issues stop-work notices to 296 construction sites in Mumbai for failing to comply with air pollution mitigation guidelines.

Mumbai: A week since the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) deadline to stakeholders in the construction business to abide by its guidelines to keep Mumbai’s air clean, 296 construction sites have been asked to stop work, for failing to stick to the mandate.

BMC Workers showering water spray on the Satrasta Road to control pollution level. (Bhushan Koyande/HT Photo)

The highest number of notices – 135 -- have been issued by the K East ward, comprising areas like Jogeshwari east, Andheri east and Vile Parle east to sites violating the guidelines, said an official from BMC’s environment department.

Manish Walanju, assistant commissioner, K East ward said, “We have one of the highest number of constriction sites. There are many ongoing redevelopment projects in Andheri and Vile Parle, and SRA projects in Jogeshwari. We will continue to take action if the construction sites do not comply with the air pollution mitigation guidelines. If the sites do not stop work despite the notice, we will seal them.”

The civic body has been issuing notices to defaulters since November 8.

After the notice is received by a respective builder or site manager, work must cease immediately and “they have to comply by the norms and get back to us with proof on the compliance. Thereafter, an officer will inspect the site before giving a go-ahead,” said an official from BMC.

All the top three defaulters are from the western suburbs. Second on the list is H east ward, which has issued

97 notices, followed by H west ward with 22 notices.

H east ward comprises areas like Bandra east, Khar east and Santacruz east, while areas under the H west ward are Bandra west, Khar west and Santacruz west.

The three-ward combine has issued a total of 254 of the 296 notices.

The civic body had issued the SOPs on October 25 and fixed a deadline of November 8 for builders, infra projects and other government agencies to conform. While setting up the guidelines, BMC commissioner Iqbal Chahal had issued a strict warning about punitive measures.

Besides the stop-work notices, BMC officials said that a total of 206 show cause notices and 3050 intimation notices have also been issued across the 24 wards.

The salient features of the detailed 27-point guideline for air pollution mitigation are installing green cloth across the sites, sprinklers and anti-smog guns, forming ward level squads and empowering ward officers to issue stop-work notices and seal sites if rules are not followed.