City plots for petrol pumps can’t be used for other purposes

Plots in the city that have been marked for petrol pumps cannot be used for any other purpose, the Maharashtra government has decided.

Plots in the city that have been marked for petrol pumps cannot be used for any other purpose, the Maharashtra government has decided.

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Mumbai has 254 fuel refill stations that cater to 16 lakh private vehicles, 55,000 taxis and more than one lakh autos.

The Maharashtra government told the Bombay High Court on Tuesday that it would amend the city’s Development Control Regulations (DCRs) to prohibit the use of such land for any other purpose.

More and more petrol pumps across the city were beginning to shut down as landowners preferred to sell their land, especially in prime locations in south and central Mumbai, as it brought in more money.

The trend began after the Maharashtra Rent Control Act was amended in 1999.

Before that public sector companies were protected as tenants.

At least nine petrol pumps got eviction notices in 2008-09 and 120 others faced eviction as the lease would expire in two to three years.