The Aryavarth Express
Agency (Mumbai): In response to a tragic incident where an illegal hoarding collapse claimed 14 lives in Ghatkopar, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) announced on Tuesday that it will take strict action against all unauthorized hoardings across Mumbai. The collapse occurred on Monday evening when the hoarding crashed onto a petrol pump in the Chheda Nagar area.
Municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani, after visiting the site where rescue operations are ongoing, stated that the BMC would start by removing the remaining three hoardings on Government Railway Police (GRP) land in Ghatkopar. “A case has been registered regarding this incident. We have also instructed all civic officials and assistant commissioners to immediately remove any hoardings erected without our permission or which pose a danger in their respective wards. This action will be completed in the next few days,” he said.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has also directed the civic body to address this issue, Gagrani added. The BMC currently lacks an elected body as civic elections have been pending for over two years.
Gagrani reiterated that the BMC had not authorized the hoarding that collapsed and had been corresponding with the owner and concerned agencies about it for the past two years. A police complaint had also been lodged regarding the poisoning of trees around the hoarding.
The BMC had encountered a legal dispute with the GRP over the need for permission for hoardings on railway land. The GRP claimed that no permission was needed under the Railway Act, while the BMC argued otherwise, leading to inaction.
An assistant police commissioner (admin) had granted permission for the four hoardings on GRP land, including the one that collapsed, without obtaining BMC approval, a civic official had claimed earlier.
Gagrani confirmed that the death toll from the incident stands at 14, with two injured persons in critical condition. Most of the injured have been admitted to Rajawadi Hospital, while those requiring neurosurgery have been transferred to KEM Hospital, both of which are managed by the BMC.
