Mumbai: Amid mounting fears of severe monsoon flooding in the chronically waterlogged Parel belt, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation intensified action against agencies linked to the Sewri-Worli Connector
project, demolishing illegal contractor structures, clearing blocked footpaths and issuing financial penalties running into crores against the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority and associated contractors.
The crackdown comes after civic officials flagged concerns that ongoing construction activity around Parel railway station, including debris dumping, blocked drains and encroached footpaths, could majorly worsen flooding during the upcoming monsoon season.
BMC Launches Demolition Drive Near Parel
Following a high-level review meeting held last week, BMC teams launched demolition operations in the area and removed five contractor chowkies and three storage godowns allegedly erected illegally on municipal footpaths, as reported by The Times of India. Contractors had not obtained mandatory permissions even for temporarily storing construction material on public pathways, according to officials.
BMC Sends ₹1.39 Cr Notice To MMRDA
In a major move, the BMC issued a notice to MMRDA’s superintendent engineer demanding Rs 1.39 crore as ground rent charges for alleged unauthorised occupation and use of footpaths between May 2024 and May 2025. The civic body warned that if the amount is not paid, the dues could be recovered directly from contractors’ running project bills.
Authorities also instructed contractors to immediately clear all construction material from public spaces and warned that even partial use of footpaths for stacking material would require fresh civic permissions.
BMC's Warning To Contractors
“If the footpath is found used for stacking material without permission, penalties will be imposed,” the BMC stated in its notice, as reported by TOI. Apart from the ground rent demand, additional penalties have also been imposed over infrastructure damage allegedly caused during project work.
The BMC levied Rs 3.7 lakh towards dewatering charges and repairs linked to damaged stormwater drains, manholes and water entrances, while another Rs 14.85 lakh penalty was imposed for alleged damage to a water main. The civic administration has also recovered Rs 81,144 from MMRDA under construction and demolition waste management rules, with debris removal operations continuing in the area.
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