'Clean South Mumbai Doesn't Mean City Is Clean': High Court Raps Civic Body

"Clean South Mumbai does not mean entire city is clean," an angry Bombay High Court expressed its displeasure with the city's civic body on Wednesday.

Slamming the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) over the garbage crisis in the city, the court reminded it that the city was not just a few clean posh enclaves.

"Everywhere there is filth...South Mumbai isn't the entire city. Just because areas like South Mumbai and Worli are clean, does not mean the whole of Mumbai is clean," the court noted.

A bench of Justices Girish Kulkarni and Neela Gokhale observed that despite providing a cleanliness plan for all 24 wards, the dumping of garbage on streets has not stopped.

Court specifically highlighted that the garbage situation in western suburbs, particularly Jogeshwari and Malad, is the worst.

The court sought a comprehensive affidavit detailing the steps taken by ward officers to ascertain the "correct position" on the ground, as well as measures taken on Gandhi Jayanti as part of the 'Swachhata Abhiyan'.

The court made the observations while hearing a batch of petitions challenging the continued dumping of municipal solid waste at the Kanjurmarg landfill.

Photo Credit: AFP Photo

The bench said it had seen little improvement in the city's hygiene despite several directions issued by the court over the years.

"We aren't against anybody, but basic hygiene discipline must be there. Ward hygiene must be maintained. We are concerned with the lives of the citizens, their health, their hygiene, etc.," it added.

Earlier, on September 10, the court had warned the BMC of contempt action against its ward officers if they failed to tackle the city's persistent garbage and littering problem. It had stressed the need for stricter enforcement of existing rules, noting that residents continued to dump garbage in open spaces.

"There's a mental block with the citizens. Wherever you see open spaces, you dump garbage there. We have the best of the laws, but when it comes to enforcement, it's a problem," the bench said.

Court has scheduled the next hearing for October 22.