Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Nov 25: With air quality plunging to alarming levels, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has activated its toughest anti-pollution response yet, warning that all construction and polluting activities could be halted if conditions continue to deteriorate. Several monitoring stations across the city have reported AQI readings in the ‘very poor’ zone, with Mazgaon hitting a worrying 306.
Invoking provisions of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP Stage IV), the civic administration is gearing up for aggressive mitigation. However, Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani clarified that a blanket city-wide construction ban is not the immediate move, stressing that officials will first roll out “positive interventions.”
According to reports, these measures include intensive water misting, deep road cleaning, and strict action against polluting bakeries, industrial units, and construction sites flouting environmental norms.
Gagrani said that targeted action will be taken at hotspots like the Mazgaon Dock area, which breached the AQI 300 mark. If air quality fails to improve, construction work in such pockets will be halted — similar to the emergency measures enforced last year.
The thick haze choking Mumbai has sharply reduced visibility, with viral images on social media showing landmarks like the Bandra–Worli Sea Link engulfed in dense smog. Residents expressed shock that a coastal city known for sea breezes is battling such severe pollution.
Flying squads across all wards have already begun inspections. The BMC’s environment department has issued notices to several bakeries and industrial units, particularly in pollution-prone areas like Deonar, where open burning remains a major concern.
Officials revealed that show-cause and stop-work notices are being served to construction sites and ready-mix concrete plants violating the civic body's stringent 28-point pollution control guidelines.
The commissioner termed construction bans as a “negative intervention,” stressing it will come into force only if earlier steps prove ineffective. Police have also been alerted to intensify night-time inspections to curb illegal burning activities.
The BMC has warned that if Mazgaon’s AQI stays above 300 for two more days, a complete halt on construction will be enforced in the area. Moreover, if the city-wide AQI breaches 200 consistently, construction activity will be stopped in the worst-affected zones.
The situation mirrors the emergency imposed on December 30, 2024, when construction was halted in Borivali East and Byculla until air quality improved a week later.
With Mumbai’s average AQI standing at 173, bordering the ‘poor’ category, the current measures mark a decisive push to prevent the city from sliding into a pollution crisis on the scale of Delhi’s annual smog battle.