Panvel Developers Under Air Quality Spotlight: Bombay HC's Stern Directives

Due to deteriorating air quality in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) over the past few days, the Bombay High Court has issued stringent directives during a suo-motu public interest litigation hearing. As part of these directives, an online meeting was convened today, on November 7, for developers in the Panvel Municipal Corporation area, presided over by Commissioner Mr. Ganesh Deshmukh. During this gathering, Commissioner Mr. Ganesh Deshmukh emphasized the need for immediate action by developers to improve air quality in the Panvel Municipal Corporation area.

Present at the meeting were Assistant Director of Urban Planning, Jyoti Kawade; Deputy Commissioner, Dr. Vaibhav Vidhate; Assistant Commissioner, Suvarna Dakhne; Chief Developer of the Construction Sector within the municipal jurisdiction; Head of the Environment Department, Manoj Chavan; and ward officers.

Commissioner Ganesh Deshmukh outlined several key measures

Commissioner Ganesh Deshmukh, while providing instructions, outlined several key measures. Firstly, all developers were directed to erect metal sheets of at least 25 feet in height around construction projects. Additionally, it was mandated that both ongoing and demolished buildings should be enclosed by wet green cloth, wet linen cloth, or tarpaulin.

Deputy Commissioner Dr. Vaibhav Vidhate elaborated on the High Court's instructions, stressing the necessity of using mobile anti-smog guns to spray water during loading and unloading operations at all construction sites. All vehicles transporting construction materials and ready-mix concrete must be fully covered on top and all sides, with strict measures to prevent leaks and overloading.

Moreover, CCTV cameras are to be installed at every construction site, and activities such as grinding, cutting, drilling, sawing, and trimming should take place within enclosed areas. Continuous fogging using water sprinklers is required to minimize air pollution. It is mandatory to deposit construction and demolition waste at designated unloading sites, with vehicles thoroughly cleaned after such disposal. Developers must also install vehicle tracking systems on vehicles carrying construction materials and debris.

The police department would take immediate action

Developers were duly informed that the police department would take immediate action against those violating these regulations, including confiscating vehicles that are in breach of the rules and those found transporting overloaded materials.