Page 4 - Bmc

BMC asks railway authorities to remove hoardings of above 40x40 feet size

In the wake of the Mumbai billboard collapse incident that claimed 14 lives, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has issued notices to the administrations of the Central Railway and the Western Railway for removal of oversized hoardings erected on their land. In a release issued on Wednesday evening, the Mumbai civic body said that under Section 30 (2) (V) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the notices have been issued to the authorities of both the zonal railways for removal of hoardings above 40 x 40 feet size. "Taking into consideration the geographical position of Mumbai, the coastal region, its weather and wind conditions, the civic body has decided not to permit erection of hoardings larger than 40x40 feet in size," the release said. On Monday evening, a 120x120 feet hoarding collapsed on a petrol pump at Chheda Nagar in Ghatkopar area of Mumbai due to gusty winds and unseasonal rains, claiming the lives of 14 persons and injuring 75 others. According to the civic

Mumbai hoarding collapse: 14 dead, BMC-Railways exchange blame. Top updates

Following the hoarding collapse, Mumbai police have filed a case against the ad agency owner and others for culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Here are the latest updates

Mumbai storm: BMC issues notice to ad agency for removal of 3 hoardings

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) issued a notice to an advertisement agency on Monday after the Ghatkopar billboard collapse incident, asking it to immediately remove the remaining three hoardings near the spot, officials said. The notice has been issued to M/s Ego Media for installing the hoarding that collapsed on the petrol pump during the gusty winds on Monday evening. According to police, eight persons were killed and more than 70 were injured in the incident. "The BMC has asked the ad agency to remove the remaining three hoardings immediately for not having valid permission," an official said. The Assistant Police Commissioner (Admin) had given permission for erecting the four hoardings on behalf of the Commissioner of Railway Police, Mumbai, including the one which collapsed on Monday, but no official permission or NOC was obtained from the BMC. The official said the land on which the hoarding was erected is the Collector land and it was in possession of Police .

Mumbai to witness high sea waves till Sunday night, says BMC advisory

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Saturday issued an advisory cautioning people against entering the Arabian Sea amid warnings about high tide till Sunday night. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and Indian National Centre for Ocean Information (INCOIS), the sea will witness a "swell of surge waves" from 11.30 am on Saturday to 11.30 pm on Sunday, the civic body said. During this time, the height of the waves will rise by 0.5 to 1.5 metres, it said. The BMC has also asked fishermen to exercise caution. BMC commissioner Bhushan Gagarin has asked civic personnel to coordinate with the police, and security guards at beaches in the city have been directed to stop people from entering the waters.

BMC warns of strict action if property tax dues not paid by May 25

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Friday warned of taking stringent action against those who do not pay their property tax by May 25, the deadline set for the financial year 2023-24. In a release, the civic body appealed to the citizens to pay their property tax within the deadline, but did not specify what action it plans to initiate against those who fail to do so. The BMC's tax assessment and collection department has launched an awareness programme through media, social media platforms and other modes. Its ward officer and citizens' facilitation centres are being kept open on holidays for the convenience of the property owners, it said. During the last fiscal, the civic body collected Rs 3,195 crore property tax of FY 23-24. Last week, the BMC decided to collect from May 1 double property tax from the shops and establishments for not displaying signboards in Marathi language or Devnagari script.

BMC unveils highest ever Budget at Rs 59,954 cr with focus on health, infra

No new taxes were proposed on Friday in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's Rs 59,954.75-crore budget for 2024-25, the highest ever, as it made special provisions for the coastal road project and proposed four new schemes, one of them for providing medicines free to patients at civic hospitals for which Rs 1,200 crore was set aside. The expenditure on the health budget was hiked to Rs 7,191 crore from Rs 6,309 crore in 2023-24 and a provision of Rs 340 crore was made for upgradation of footpaths, lanes and bylanes. A sum of Rs 100 crore was allocated for implementation of a scheme for women's security. The budgetary estimates were 10.5 per cent more than the 2023-24 amount of Rs 54,256.07 crore. The administration of India's richest civic body presented the budget for the next fiscal to municipal commissioner-cum-administrator Iqbal Singh Chahal at the BMC headquarters in south Mumbai. Chahal, a senior IAS officer, was appointed the BMC administrator by the Maharashtra ...

BMC presents Rs 59,954.75 crore budget; 10.5% higher than last year

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), India's richest civic body, on Friday presented a Rs 59,954.75 crore budget for the year 2024-25. The budgetary estimates this time are 10.5 per cent more than the 2023-24 amount of Rs 54,256.07 crore. The civic administration presented the budget to municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal, who was appointed as BMC administrator by the state government after the five-year term of corporators ended in March 2022. The budget estimates for the financial year 2024-25 are proposed at Rs 59,954.75 crore, which exceeds the budget estimates of 2022-23, that is Rs 54,256.07 crore, by 10.5 per cent, said the budget document. This is the second time after 1985 that the BMC administration has presented the budget to an administrator as the five-year term of its corporators has ended.

BMC Khichdi scam: ED summons Sanjay Raut's brother Sandeep for questioning

In June last year, ED conducted raids at 15 locations in Mumbai, including Suraj Chavan's residence and recovered documents in connection with the scam

Nineteen new cases of JN.1 subvariant of Covid-19 detected in Mumbai

Nineteen persons have tested positive for JN.1 sub-variant of coronavirus in Mumbai, an official from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said on Tuesday. Out of 22 samples found positive for JN.1 subvariant in Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) analysis, 19 were from Mumbai, Daksha Shah, executive health officer of the BMC told PTI. Two samples belonged to patients from outside the city, and one was a duplicate, she said. According to a release issued by the civic body, these samples were sent for testing last month, and the reports arrived on Monday. All 19 patients who tested positive for JN.1 in the city suffered mild symptoms, and two of them had comorbidities. The patients have recovered from the infection, it stated. Most of the samples were tested at private laboratories, the release said. Of the 8,262 samples tested between December 1, 2023 and January 8, 2024, only 394 tested positive for coronavirus, it stated.

Property registrations in Mumbai to touch 11-year high in Nov: Knight Frank

Mumbai is expected to witness 9,548 property registrations in November, reflecting a 7 per cent increase compared to the same month last year

176 shops, establishments face BMC action for no Marathi signboards

The Mumbai civic body on Tuesday took legal action against 176 shops and establishments for not displaying their signboards in the Marathi (Devnagri) script in bold letters, thus violating a Supreme Court directive and provisions of a Maharashtra legislation on the issue. Besides prosecuting the violators, a financial penalty of Rs 2,000 per day may be imposed on shopkeepers and establishments continuously flouting the rule, it said. In a press release, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said teams of facilitators from the shops and establishments department checked 3,269 commercial premises for their signboards on the first day of its drive to check implementation of the SC directive and provisions of the relevant Act. Of these, 176 shops and establishments were found in non-compliant with the rule to put up signboards in the Marathi (Devnagri) script in bold letters, said the release. The BMC has launched a drive to check whether or not Marathi signboards in bold ...

BMC allocates Rs 1,500 crore for the upcoming healthcare schemes

BMC has also revealed that they are allocating Rs 3,500 crore for capital expenditure in the next couple of months and are planning to recruit 3,000 healthcare professionals

BMC chief urges Mumbaikars to follow HC directive on Diwali firecrackers

Mumbai civic chief Iqbal Chahal on Friday appealed to citizens to follow the Bombay High Court's directive and burst firecrackers only between 7 pm and 10 pm during Diwali. Earlier this week, the high court ordered to limit fireworks between 7 pm and 10 pm during the festival. I request that you all, with folded hands, follow the court's directive and do not burst the crackers that will add to the air and noise pollution, Chahal urged in a video message. He said that citizens had responded positively to his appeals during the COVID-19 pandemic, and this time too he hopes that they will follow the court's directive. Air pollution has become an issue in the city due to dust from construction activities and other factors, he said, adding that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has taken various steps to improve the situation. Though the chief minister has made it a people's movement, it will not succeed unless all citizens of Mumbai participate in it, the civic chief said.

Air pollution: BMC takes action against gold and silver smelting units

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has demolished four chimneys of gold and silver smelting units in Kalbadevi and Zaveri Bazar area in South Mumbai amid worsening air pollution in the city, officials said on Wednesday. According to BMC officials, their C-ward took action against the units as they were compounding the air pollution in the metropolis. Mumbai's average air quality index (AQI) stood at around 150, or "moderate", on Wednesday, according to official data. As part of the business of making ornaments and allied activities, gold and silver are melted in smelting units, which are mostly small-scale factories. While the precious metals are melted in a furnace, gaseous byproducts are released into the air through chimneys, civic officials said. However, when such fumes are released without scientific treatment, they pose a threat to human health, they said. As these hazardous gases add to the city's pollution, BMC has initiated a drive against those violating the air ...

BMC plans to set up office to seek hyper local data to tackle air pollution

Mumbai's civic body is in the process of setting up a command and control centre to collect data using sensor-based air quality index (AQI) monitoring devices, an official said on Thursday. The proposal is in the "pipeline", an official told PTI, adding devices will be installed in various areas of the metropolis for "hyper local" information. He, however, said no formal proposal has been prepared in connection with the initiative. A day earlier Mumbai guardian minister Deepak Kesarkar had told reporters six technologies, including vehicle-mounted air filters, have been identified for reducing air pollution in the city. As many as 350 buses of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) will be fitted with "vehicle-mounted filters" for "removal of impurities" from dust and other particles, Kesarkar had said while addressing a press conference. As per the latest data of the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR-India), the overall AQI in Mumbai was

BMC issues new guidelines for construction sites to curb air pollution

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Wednesday issued the Guidelines for Air Pollution Mitigation which banned open-air burning of trash or any other material across Mumbai. The guidelines, signed by municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal, came amid the worsening Air Quality Index (AQI) in India's financial capital. There shall be a complete ban on open burning anywhere in the geographical area under BMC, especially at garbage dumping grounds and possible sites of trash burning, an official release said. Last week, after holding a joint meeting with all concerned authorities, Chahal had announced that the guidelines would be issued by Monday, but they were released two days late. Builders in the city must engage only the vehicles fitted with a tracking system for the transportation of construction materials, the guidelines said. CCTV cameras must be installed along the periphery of all construction sites to ensure that vehicles are plying after cleaning tyres and not

Mumbai: 16 students fall ill after consuming mid-day meal at BMC-run school

The condition of the children is stable, he said

Both Shiv Sena factions seek BMC's nod for Dussehra rally at Shivaji Park

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has received applications from both the Shiv Sena factions for holding the annual Dussehra rally at the iconic Shivaji Park here, a civic official said. Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray had started the tradition of holding the Dussehra rally at the Shivaji Park in Dadar area of Mumbai. The BMC received an application on October 1 from MLA Sada Sarvankar, belonging to the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Ekanth Shinde, and another application from the Shiv Sena (UBT) central office on October 7, the official told PTI. "We have received two applications for the Dussehra rally at the Shivaji Park," the official said. Dussehra festival will be celebrated on October 24 this year. Last year also, the rival Sena camps led by Shinde and former CM Uddhav Thackeray had filed applications seeking permission to hold the annual Dussehra rally at the Shivaji Park ground. The civic body had denied permission to both the factions citing law

37,599 Ganesh idols immersed by 3 am on Fri as festival drew to close: BMC

As the 10-day-long Ganeshotsav drew to a close on Thursday, thousands of idols of the elephant-headed god were immersed in water bodies, including artificial ponds, in Mumbai in the presence of a sea of devotees. The city's famous Lalbaugcha Raja idol, whose procession started at 11.30 am on Thursday, was immersed around 9.15 am on Friday, said officials. More than 37,599 idols were immersed across the city till 3 am on Friday, according to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). A 16-year-old boy drowned in the sea off the Juhu beach on Thursday evening. Amid the beating of drums and chants of Ganpati Bappa Morya', various Ganesh mandals in the city started processions on Thursday to immerse the idols of the deity, marking the culmination of the 10-day festival. The procession of the Lalbaugcha Raja Ganesh idol started at 11.30 am and it was immersed in the sea off the Girgaum Chowpatty around 9.15 am on Friday, said officials. Of the 37,599 idols immersed until 3 am on Fr

Over 80,000 idols immersed in Mumbai on fifth day of Ganesh festivities

More than 80,000 idols were immersed between Saturday, which was the fifth day of Ganesh festivities, and the early hours of Sunday in Mumbai, a civic official said. As per a release from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, 80,969 idols were immersed till 3am on Sunday, comprising 1,410 'sarvajanik' or public idols, 71,821 household ones and 7,738 Gauri Ganesh idols. Of these, 32,509 idols were immersed in artificial waterbodies, comprising 581 public idols, 29,620 household ones and 2,308 Gauri Ganesh idols, it said. The immersions took place in Girgaum, Dadar, Juhu, Marve and Aksa beaches and 73 natural spots as well as 191 artificial ponds created by the civic body. In a statement, Mumbai police said 2,094 officials, 11083 constables, 32 platoons of State Reserve Police Force (SRPF), Quick Response Team (QRT), Rapid Action Force and Home Guards have been deployed in the city in view of festivities. It said no untoward incident was reported through the day during immersion.