Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has issued a formal warning to the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP) after discovering violations of air pollution control norms at a work site in Matunga. The site, where the redevelopment is being carried out by Nav Bharat Mega Developers Pvt Ltd (NMDPL), came under scrutiny during recent inspections by the environmental-monitoring squad of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
According to the BMC’s letter to DRP, the NMDPL site lacked essential pollution-control measures. Observers noted missing green cloth or jute-sheet enclosures around the site, absence of dust- or smoke-extraction equipment, no proper facility for washing construction vehicles, and no boards showing air-quality index or safety–compliance status. Locals in the area had also raised complaints about dust and air pollution during the redevelopment work.
The BMC has demanded immediate corrective actions. If the violations are not addressed, the civic body has warned, the ongoing work could be halted and the contractor’s permission revoked. A follow-up inspection has been scheduled within a week, according to report by Loksatta.
The warning comes amid a wider crackdown on construction-related air pollution across Mumbai. Earlier this year, BMC teams issued hundreds of show-cause notices and stop-work orders to projects failing to follow the mandated dust-control and air-quality guidelines.
Given the scale of the redevelopment project in one of India’s largest slum areas, compliance with environmental norms is critical. Residents and civic-watch groups argue that without proper dust suppression, waste management and air-quality safeguards, the redevelopment could pose serious health risks, especially in densely populated localities like Matunga and surrounding neighbourhoods.
