In the last 11 months, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has taken action against 1.57 lakh citizens and collected a fine of INR 4.54 crore from those violating the rules and contributing to the city’s uncleanliness.
Of the total, 44 per cent of them were penalised for spitting in public places across Mumbai. INR 1.25 crore fine came from 62,892 people penalised for spitting in public, primarily on roads.
In April 2024, the BMC appointed clean-up marshals to monitor and penalise the offenders.
Additionally, 32,012 people were fined for littering, resulting in INR 65.71 lakh in penalties. Under the “Swachh Angan Scheme,” marshals also fined 14,014 industries, bungalows, and row houses, collecting INR 1.40 crore in fines.
The highest fine of INR 1.40 crore was collected from a private premise for failing to maintain cleanliness.
As per BMC policy, marshals can impose fines ranging from INR 200 to INR 1,000, depending on the violation. The collected fine is split equally between the BMC and the marshal.
Each civic ward has around 30 clean-up marshals. The BMC first introduced the clean-up marshal system in 2008 but discontinued it in 2011 following numerous complaints. The system was reintroduced in 2016 but again faced backlash due to allegations of unnecessary fine collection. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the BMC allowed marshals to fine people for not wearing masks.
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