BMC’s Universal Footpath Policy 2023 modified

Mumbai: To push forward with its ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign launched earlier this week to remove all encroachments from footpaths, BMC has dropped certain provisions of Universal Footpath Policy 2023 that allowed some structures to be set up and vehicles to be parked on pavements on a temporary basis “in isolated and rare cases”.The modifications are part of a set of guidelines issued for implementation of the campaign. The guidelines retain the provision that all forms of footpath encroachments must be removed following the due process of law, but they remove detailed clauses governing permissions for parking and temporary structures.The modifications apply to footpaths that have been identified as per these guidelines.Listing informal commercial activities such as vending stalls, hawkers, feeder pillar boxes of electricity and telephone utilities, and parking of vehicles as “common but undesirable features”, the guidelines said these sometimes make footpaths inaccessible/unusable. “For assuring increased comfort, uninterrupted access, optimum footpath width; encroachment of all forms on footpath shall be removed by following due process of law. The subsequent text covering temporary parking on footpaths shall stand omitted,” stated a section.Under the 2023 policy, parking on footpaths was described as dangerous for pedestrians, but it allowed licences or permissions in isolated and rare cases for a maximum of 15 days with reasons recorded in writing and with the prior approval of the additional municipal commissioner. The policy prescribed a minimum 1.2m width for pedestrians in such cases.These provisions now stand deleted.The 2023 policy also said that no temporary permission should be granted to erect structures on footpaths without the prior approval of the additional municipal commissioner or the municipal commissioner, while requiring a minimum 1.5m width for pedestrian movement. This, too, has been omitted in the modification.The detailed six-page guidelines also assign responsibility across departments for making footpaths obstruction-free. Licence and encroachment officials will be responsible for removing unauthorised structures and hawkers, enforcing a zero-tolerance approach towards shopkeepers displaying goods on footpaths, and removing unauthorised banners, hoardings and advertisements.Phase 1 of the ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign will cover 320km of footpaths. BMC chief Ashwini Bhide, along with senior civic officers, inspected footpaths in high footfall areas of Andheri West and Goregaon on Thursday, with priority given to S V Road-Ram Ganesh Gadkari Marg stretch leading to Cooper Hospital that seeks heavy pedestrian and ambulance movement.