BMC Collects Highest Fines From "These" SoBo Areas For Spitting & Littering

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has penalised over 53,725 citizens for littering, spitting and other violations pertaining to public hygiene and collected a fine of over INR 1.55 crores in four months since the revival of the clean-up marshal programme.

According to senior officials, most fines have been imposed for spitting and littering. The highest number of fines were slapped in A ward, which comprises Churchgate, Colaba, Navy Nagar.

This has been attributed to a large number of tourists flocking to popular spots like Marine Drive, Gateway of India etc., alongside the presence of key railway stations like Churchgate and CSMT. Owing to the high footfall, the civic body has deployed the maximum number of marshals – 112 – in the upscale ward. Earlier, in June, there were 94 marshals.

An official told Indian Express that a lot of fines are also collected from those who fail to keep their premises clean under the swachh angaan (clean angaan) programme. Meanwhile, many penalties are levied against bulk generators that do not segregate waste.

As per data revealed by the BMC, of the total INR 1,55,70,512 (1.55 crore) penalty which has been scooped up since April, the maximum fines have been collected from A ward wherein 15,550 people have been slapped with penalties to the tune of INR 31.33 lakh.

The second highest penalty has been collected from 3,613 people generating INR 14.04 lakh in R/Central ward (Borivali), followed by INR 11.39 lakh fines collected in K/East ward (Andheri East) and INR 10.71 lakh from 2,655 violators in R/South ward (Kandivali).

Meanwhile, the lowest fines have been generated in T ward (Mulund) wherein only 183 people were fined generating INR 1.41 lakh. However, T ward also has the lowest number of marshals–alongside H/East ward — both have only nine marshals.

However, the programme has surfaced problems in areas like K/West (Andheri, Juhu, Versova) and P/North (Malad); as despite having the largest jurisdictions and populations, they have not generated a single penny in fines, owing to the contractor backing off.