Mumbai’s Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has reaffirmed its resolve to halting new road excavations as the monsoon season approaches. The city council issued a fresh instruction, tightening the restriction on digging up roads, following infractions by contractors who continued excavation despite previous orders.
Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani had earlier suspended road excavations to curb air pollution until existing roads were fully concretised. The latest order, issued on March 4, mandates that no new roads be dug up after February 22, 2025. However, ongoing excavation work must be completed by May 31, 2025, to minimise inconvenience to citizens.
Local ward offices are urged to be notified of unapproved road excavation. The chief engineer for roads, the deputy municipal commissioner for infrastructure, and the assistant municipal commissioners for each of the 25 wards in Mumbai have all been informed of the decision.
The decision to concretise Mumbai’s roads was initiated by former Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in 2023 to eliminate potholes. Out of the city’s 2,050 km road network, 1,000 km has already been concretised. The BMC has issued work orders covering 701 km (2,118 roads), with 503 roads under construction in the island city alone.
Excavating roads at this point would delay the concretisation process and make it more difficult to achieve the May 31, 2025 target, according to Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects) Abhijit Bangar. The civic organisation is adamant about finishing all outstanding roadwork by the deadline.
Source: The Free Press Journal
