Mount Mary fair policy: BMC pulls out last year’s plan, irks Bandra residents

A review meeting with the residents will be held at the end of this week to finalise the policy.

While the civic body claims it is ready with a policy for the annual Mount Mary fair at Bandra to be held in September and has even invited suggestions and objections, the citizens are irked. Why? The policy is the same as last year’s and has not even included the suggestions sent then.

Devotees come to pay their tribute at the Mount Mary Church in Bandra on the last day of the Mount Mary fair-2017 in Mumbai. (Satyabrata Tripathy/HT File)

The Mount Mary fair will be held between September 9 and September 16. Last week, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) published last year’s policy with 60-odd points regulating stalls, street cooking, fire safety, traffic safety, BEST bus routes, health and cleanliness, and hawkers in the area for the Bandra fair. “We have published last year’s policy so citizens can give suggestions and objections, according to the directives of the court in 2015. Once they send their suggestions, they will be added to the policy.” Sharad Ughade, assistant commissioner of H-West ward.

A senior official of the fire brigade said, “The rules for fire safety will change once the ward sends blueprints marking stalls near the church to us. The 23-pointer codified fire safety requirement published by BMC for Ganpati and Navratri pandals will apply to the stalls too, although with some riders.”

Lillian Pias, a resident of the area, who filed a writ petition in 2014 regarding the rules at Mount Mary fair, said the civic body did not consider the views they gave in a review meeting in the ward office in June. “The points I raised were regarding relocating of the police chowky, which occupies half the road, water taps at the junction of St John Baptist road, making St John Baptist road one-way street with dedicated access for emergency vehicles and residents, making fire hydrants accessible, and relocating the garbage collection point from the nearby playground,” Pias said.

A review meeting with the residents will be held at the end of this week to finalise the policy, Ughade said.