The BMC sports turf policy will regulate commercially operated cricket, football and other sports turfs on municipal leasehold plots in Mumbai, with operators required to obtain permission and pay an annual licence fee linked to Ready Reckoner land rates.
The civic administration framed the policy after finding that a considerable number of turfs were being run on municipal land without the required permission or No Objection Certificate. Several facilities are booked online and offline, generating revenue for lessees, occupants or third-party operators without a revenue share reaching the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.
Under the policy, the annual Turf Licence Fee will be calculated at 1% of the applicable land rate multiplied by the turf area. The land rate will be based on the Ready Reckoner rate prevailing in the year approval is granted. The same principle will apply when permissions are renewed.
The BMC Estates Department cited the scale of its landholdings as a reason for introducing the framework. According to the circular reported by the Times of India, the department has allotted around 4,177 plots on lease for periods that include leases in perpetuity and leases ranging from 999 years to 30 years. Some of these plots are being used by lessees or third parties for sports turfs.
Permission will be considered only when sports use is allowed under the original lease conditions, the Development Plan and the Development Control and Promotion Regulations 2034. The permission will not constitute a change in land use. The policy also covers permissible sports turfs on municipal leasehold land, including vacant land under Vacant Land Tenancy.
Permanent, covered or reinforced cement concrete construction will not be allowed under the framework. The BMC defines a sports turf as a demarcated play area with an artificial or natural surface. Removable fixtures such as nets, poles and lighting are included within the definition.
Applicants will have to submit a detailed layout and turf area plan, a stability certificate, PAN and GST registration, the lease or third-party agreement, and a registered undertaking to comply with the policy conditions. Where the applicant is not the lessee, an No Objection Certificate from the lessee will also be required.
Permissions will be issued for one or three years, subject to renewal and the remaining period of the lease. The BMC can cancel permission if the conditions are violated and recover or forfeit the licence fee. It can also direct the removal of a turf within one month, with the applicant bearing the cost and receiving no refund of the amount paid.
The policy includes a one-time amnesty mechanism intended to bring existing unauthorised turfs into the regulatory framework. Existing and newly proposed turfs that apply during the one-year amnesty period will be eligible for a 40% concession on the applicable Turf Licence Fee, subject to the municipal commissioner’s approval. Applicants would therefore pay 60% of the calculated fee during the amnesty period.
The concession will apply only to the initial approval period and not to later renewals. Turfs found operating without permission after one year from the circular’s issuance will face a penalty equivalent to five times the applicable Turf Licence Fee. The civic body may also seal the premises and discontinue the activity.
The BMC plans to move applications, scrutiny, approvals, fee payments, demand notices and renewals online. Until a dedicated portal becomes operational, applications will continue to be processed through the existing offline system.
