BMC’s air pollution management strategy in Mumbai depends on builder self-certification.

MUMBAI: According to an action plan created by the civic body, if builders do not take action to reduce the dust produced from construction sites, the BMC would issue stop-work warnings to them and take legal action if necessary.

If contractors fail to self-certify that a construction project complies with dust mitigation standards, such as installing metal sheets around the perimeter of the site, water-fogging during excavation, loading/unloading construction materials, and periodically sprinkling soil strata before excavation begins, civic action will follow.

The offense is punishable under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act (MRTPA) with a sentence of one month to three years in prison. For instance, if a project proponent, architect, or land surveyor fails to provide self-certification about compliance with the dust mitigation criteria on the BMC website, a warning letter will be sent to the proponent for rectification/compliance within a week.

If the builder continues to disobey, additional sanctions under the MMC Act or MRTPA, including the issuance of a stop work notice, would be taken.

On the first occasion of non-compliance, a warning letter will be issued by a task force at the ward level that will visit project sites to inspect compliance. Also, the task force will give the concerned assistant commissioner a weekly report on the actions performed.

These are parts of the report submitted to municipal commissioner IS Chahal last week, which has been accepted. “The report has been submitted and accepted and implementation will start at the earliest,” said additional municipal commissioner Dr. Sanjeev Kumar.

Chahal appointed a seven-person team two weeks prior to determine the dust management techniques that Mumbai must begin using on April 1. A copy of the paper, which outlines immediate, short-term, and long-term actions that Mumbai must take to address escalating dust pollution issues that residents have been raising for many months, is with TOI.

Mumbai’s air quality index (AQI) has been consistently in the poor category prior to the unseasonal rains that the city experienced earlier this month, leading the authorities to propose alternatives.

The contractor in question will follow the same procedure for civic infrastructure projects, where continuous metal barricades must be placed at work sites prior to the start of excavation or trenching work, sand, and other construction materials must be stored at designated locations, and all debris must be removed within 24 hours.