Why the BMC has mandated Mumbai’s eateries and bakeries to switch to clean fuels

How do bakeries and eateries contribute to air pollution?

According to a 2024 survey carried out by Bombay Environmental Action Group (BEAG), there are currently 628 bakeries in Mumbai.

During the survey, BEAG also examined 216 of these bakeries and found that 47% of them use carbon-intensive fuels such as wood and scrap. These fuels contribute to the generation of pollutants such as PM 2.5.

“Our findings show that the average consumption of wood is around 130 kg per day, which leads to emission of at least 80,381 kg of PM 2.5 annually from these 72 bakeries. The remaining 28 bakeries that run on wood do not keep an inventory of fuel consumption therefore their emission levels could not be calculated,” Dr Tuhin Banerji, project head for the survey and former senior scientist at CSIR NEERI told the Indian Express.

“80,000 kg of PM 2.5 accounts for smoking five billion cigarettes in a lifetime. An average human does not even consume these many cigarettes in a single lifetime,” he said.

Since 2022, air pollution has been a major issue in Mumbai. In 2023, the BMC issued the Mumbai Air Pollution Mitigation Plan (MAPMP) in which smoke and emission generated from bakeries and eateries were identified as one of the key sources of the city’s air pollution. The BMC’s data show that currently, bakeries contribute to 6% of Mumbai’s overall air quality.

“Even though 6% may not be a very high number, it should be noted that almost all these bakeries are located in densely populated areas like Byculla, Mazgaon, Malad, and Santacruz among others. Therefore, their contribution to human beings is very hazardous,” said a civic official.

What has been done so far?

According to the civic authorities, 29 bakeries have switched to cleaner fuels in the past six months. The civic authorities maintained that over the past three months, multiple meetings were held with bakery and eatery owners.

“Their main concern is acquiring permission to switch to eco-friendly fuel. Therefore, we have promised them that the BMC will expedite the process of issuing permission by coordinating with responsible agencies and ensuring a single window system,” said an official.

The civic body, however, has said stringent action will be taken against the entities which will fail to comply with the norms by the given deadline.

“If anybody fails to comply, we will first issue a show cause notice, asking them to immediately install a mode of cleaner fuel. If they fail to do so within a given period, we will ask the license department to shut down the entity till they switch to cleaner fuel,” the official said.