Illegal constructions: In April, BMC acted on less than 11% complaints

Officials blamed “poll duty” for not taking down illegal constructions.

“About 11,000 staff from various BMC departments, especially from local wards, were picked up for election duty. In April, along with other civic services, action against illegal construction also faced hurdles. Local wards take action against illegal construction and encroachment. But many of our employees were on election duty, resulting in 3,668 complaints remaining pending in April,” said an official from removal of encroachment department from the suburbs.

“Now, our employees are back and action is being taken on pending complaints,” he added,

The offficial said that most complaints have been received from Kurla, Sakinaka, Andheri and Ghatkopar areas.

“These areas have seen massive illegal construction. In many cases, people have raised the height of shanties from two to three storeys. All the complaints were registered on the online complaint system,” the official said.

Data also shows that in March, while 4,146 complaints were received about illegal construction, action was taken in only 1,278 cases.