Why BMC carried out GRAP 4 measures in Mumbai | Mumbai Information

Nevertheless, this motion got here a 12 months after the civic authorities had introduced the Mumbai Air Air pollution Mitigation Plan (MAPMP) which specifies mud mitigation measures to curb man-made elements that contribute to Mumbai’s worsening AQI. The BMC had introduced the MAPMP in 2023 after the town recorded poor AQI at a steady stretch.

What does imposing GRAP imply in Mumbai?

Civic officers maintained that the GRAP laws had been issued following Bombay Excessive Courtroom directives ordering the BMC and the Maharashtra Air pollution Management Board (MPCB) to implement stringent measures to curb worsening AQI ranges.

“The GRAP is a short lived measure… We (BMC) have been ordered to work aggressively by the excessive courtroom. A venture report needs to be submitted to the courtroom on January 9 highlighting the actions we have now taken up to now,” an official mentioned. “Such an adversarial step has been taken that we as an authority can inform the courtroom that we have now not let our guard down,” the official added.

As a part of the MAPMP, the BMC had directed contractors and actual property corporations to cowl the periphery of the venture website with tin and asbestos sheets. The civic authorities had additionally mandated the set up of AQI-monitoring sensors on the website together with a steady sprinkling of water to forestall mud displacement. The MAPMP tips additionally acknowledged that whereas transporting development particles, the carriages of vans ought to be coated to forestall particles from falling.

Final 12 months, the BMC had additionally deployed flying squads comprising officers of BMC, MPCB and Mumbai Police in every of the 26 municipal wards that might monitor the development zones and air pollution hotspots recurrently. These officers would submit a report back to the civic administration, based mostly on which actions like slapping penalties had been taken in opposition to the offenders.

Have been the earlier BMC guidelines efficient?

Civic officers maintained that although the SOPs below MAPMP had been in place, guaranteeing that they had been being carried out at each ward was a mammoth job. “Over the previous 12 months, the BMC has given permission to greater than 1 lakh growth initiatives. Other than this, a number of authorities initiatives like street concretisation and Metro works are ongoing. All through final 12 months, we had taken motion in opposition to a number of violators, and notices had been additionally despatched to numerous events,” mentioned a civic official.

“Nevertheless, contemplating the massive dimension of Mumbai, there’s a dearth of logistics, on account of which in lots of pockets, we missed out on taking motion,” the official added.

After the town’s AQI deteriorated from December 15, the BMC had reimposed its MAPMP tips. Over the previous week, the civic authorities collected a penalty quantity upto Rs 50,000 day-after-day from violators who would flout mud mitigation norms below numerous sections.

In keeping with the BMC’s strong waste administration guidelines, the civic physique imposes a penalty of Rs 200 for littering and spitting, Rs 500 for littering by pets in public areas, whereas Rs 1,000 is imposed on individuals for laundry autos, defecating, dumping particles and disposing of waste in public areas. A penalty of Rs 100 is levied for burning rubbish.

“Implementing GRAP will probably be like generalising the principles, which might imply that every one the authorities and stakeholders are going to have just one set of SOPs to stick to. These guidelines are to be adopted in every single place within the metropolis and suburbs and upon violation, motion can be taken in opposition to the events involved,” Avinash Dhakane, Member Secretary, MPCB, informed The Indian Categorical.