Mumbai’s approach to managing construction-led air pollution has come under judicial scrutiny after a court-appointed committee reported widespread non-compliance with mandated environmental safeguards across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Based on inspections of 36 construction, demolition and infrastructure sites in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai, the findings point to systemic enforcement gaps at a time when Mumbai air pollution has become a persistent urban risk.
The committee, set up by the Bombay High Court late last month, was tasked with independently assessing whether civic agencies were implementing existing pollution-control protocols. Its conclusions suggest that despite detailed operating procedures and regulatory circulars, compliance on the ground remains inconsistent and largely reactive. Most sites visited were found to be falling short of required dust suppression, monitoring, and waste-handling measures, according to the submission made to the court earlier this week. A central concern highlighted was the ineffective use of air quality monitoring technology. While many construction sites have installed sensor-based Air Quality Index devices, these systems operate in isolation. Data from site-level monitors is neither centrally aggregated nor linked to official platforms managed by municipal corporations or the state pollution regulator. As a result, readings cannot be tracked in real time, limiting their usefulness for enforcement or early intervention. Urban infrastructure specialists note that sensor placement further weakens the monitoring framework.
At large developments spanning several acres or involving high-rise construction, a single monitor placed at ground level or near an entry gate offers little insight into actual dust dispersion. “Monitoring becomes symbolic when scale and building height are ignored,” an environmental consultant familiar with large projects said.The committee also observed that pollution mitigation tools such as water sprinklers, fogging systems and smog guns were deployed sporadically, often just ahead of inspections. This pattern suggests compliance driven more by inspection schedules than by continuous environmental management. Municipal road-cleaning operations were similarly flagged for contributing to particulate matter when dry sweeping was carried out without adequate wetting or containment. Transport of construction and demolition waste emerged as another weak link. Vehicles were frequently found uncovered and without tracking mechanisms, increasing the risk of dust emissions along arterial roads. For a city already grappling with congestion and public health pressures, such lapses carry wider economic and social costs.
Policy experts argue that Mumbai air pollution cannot be addressed through fragmented oversight. Integrating site-level data into citywide monitoring systems, standardising sensor specifications, and enforcing accountability across public and private actors are seen as essential next steps. As Mumbai continues to grow vertically and horizontally, aligning construction activity with environmental performance is increasingly central to building a resilient, inclusive and low-carbon urban future.
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