GRAP-4 Measures In Place In Mumbai As Air Quality Deteriorates. Details Here

Municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani said that construction work was immediately suspended in Borivali East and Byculla due to the poor air quality. 

A view of the city skyline engulfed in smog, at Girgaon area in Mumbai.

Source : PTI

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Tuesday announced imposing GRAP 4 restrictions in Mumbai amid the worsening air quality.

The move comes even as the air quality in parts of Mumbai dipped to poor levels this week, prompting civic authorities to take strict pollution control measures.

As part of the Stage 4 restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan, the construction work, including private and public, will be suspended with immediate effect in areas where the Air Quality Index (AQI) is above 200.

Municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani said that construction work was immediately suspended in Borivali East and Byculla due to the poor air quality. 

"In areas where the AQI index surpasses the 200-mark, we will be stopping work at all construction sites under the GRAP 4 norms. Once the AQI breaches 200, the rule will be implemented immediately without issuing any stop-work notices to the developers. For now, we have immediately implemented the rule and suspended construction work in Borivali East and Byculla which have consistently seen poor AQI," Mumbai's municipal commissioner said while announcing the measures.

What Does Imposing GRAP Mean For Mumbai?

The civil officials said that the GRAP regulations were announced after the Bombay High Court directives ordering the BMC and the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) to implement measures to curb worsening AQI levels. 

"Over the past year, the BMC has given permission to more than 1 lakh development projects. Apart from this, several government projects like road concretisation and Metro works are ongoing. Throughout last year, we had taken action against multiple violators, and notices were also sent to various parties," a civic official told The Indian Express. 

Mumbai officials said that the GRAP is a temporary measure and a report would be submitted before the high court on January highlighting the actions taken by the authority. 

GRAP 4 restrictions under the winter air pollution control plan, include a complete ban on construction activities, as the AQI worsened to the ‘severe’ category due to adverse weather conditions.