BMC Halts Construction in Byculla & Borivali Due to Pollution
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has announced the suspension of all construction activities in Byculla and Borivali East. This decision comes after air quality levels consistently exceeded the 200 mark on the Air Quality Index (AQI), categorising the air as “poor” and prompting urgent action from the civic body.
The construction halt will come into effect within the next 24 hours and will impact both private and public construction sites. The BMC has made it clear that failure to comply with this directive will result in legal action under the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning (MRTP) Act 52, potentially leading to non-bailable police cases for offenders. Currently, Mumbai has 2,200 active construction sites spread across its various wards, with an average of 50 to 60 sites per ward. The BMC has pointed to a 50 percent rise in pollution attributed to climate change, with the remaining pollution levels driven by vehicular emissions and dust from construction activities. These construction sites are being closely scrutinised, and the BMC has implemented stricter regulations to curb dust and air pollution, which have been significant contributors to deteriorating air quality.
Areas such as Colaba-Navy Nagar, Byculla, Worli, and Borivali have consistently been reporting poor air quality, prompting the BMC to take decisive action. Construction activities in these areas will cease until further approval is granted by the BMC. Developers in these regions will be required to demonstrate compliance with 28 specific guidelines aimed at reducing air pollution at their sites. Once evaluated, the BMC will decide whether these sites can resume work or if further action is needed. Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani emphasised the importance of enforcing these measures, stating that construction sites must stop operations and adopt necessary mitigation strategies to ensure public safety. He added that while certain road work, such as concretisation, would continue, no new trenching work would be permitted until air quality improves.
In response to these urgent measures, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) has outlined long-term solutions, including the instruction for Ready-mix Concrete (RMC) plants to cover their sites and restricting new plants to locations outside Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). The BMC has already inspected 877 construction sites across the city since November 2024, issuing stop-work notices to 286 of them. In addition, efforts to address road dust and air pollution are ongoing, with various initiatives being put in place to improve air quality in the coming months. The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking has also added more electric buses to its fleet in an effort to reduce vehicular emissions. As part of the city’s broader strategy to combat pollution, the BMC has registered 352 cases for illegal waste burning between November 4 and 10th December 2024. The city is also receiving increasing reports through the Mumbai Air App, with many cases related to pollution being actively resolved.
