Now Reading: BMC sets May 2028 deadline for steel nets across Mumbai nullahs
-
01
BMC sets May 2028 deadline for steel nets across Mumbai nullahs
The BMC has set a May 2028 deadline to install steel nets across all major nullahs in Mumbai's suburbs after a pilot in Bandra West proved effective at stopping garbage dumping. The…
The BMC has set a May 2028 deadline to install steel nets across all major nullahs in Mumbai's suburbs after a pilot in Bandra West proved effective at stopping garbage dumping. The 10-foot-high nets at Main Avenue and South Avenue nullahs have significantly cut waste being thrown into waterways, civic officials said.
The civic body has now begun work on the Vakola River, where dumping near the Dnyaneshwar slum settlement has left the waterway heavily polluted. Additional Municipal Commissioner Abhijeet Bangar said the measure has tackled a decades-old problem and the BMC plans to cover all major nullahs within two years.
The plan faces a challenge in Mankhurd and Dharavi, where huts are built right against nullah walls, making net installation difficult due to encroachments. The BMC has 314 major nullahs spanning 300 km across Mumbai.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Mumbai's 314 major nullahs run 300 km and are the city's primary storm-water drains. The BMC has tried desilting, fines and awareness drives, but bulk waste such as furniture and construction debris kept blocking them. The steel-net pilot in Bandra West from December 2023 showed a simple physical barrier could stop dumping where nothing else worked. Enforcement is the challenge: even with nets, dumping can shift to the next uncovered stretch. Encroachments on nullah walls in Mankhurd and Dharavi will require either relocation or redesign of the nets. The BMC must also maintain and clean the nets through each monsoon, or the collected waste itself becomes a blockage. The next milestone is the completion target of May 2028, but the net on the Vakola River due sooner will be watched as a test case for slum-adjacent waterways.
Source: freepressjournal.in
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
