Mumbai civic body collects ₹39.13 lakh fine for spitting in public in last 9 months

Mumbai : Between June 2 and August 6, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has recovered Rs 10.46 lakh in fine from offenders spitting in public spaces and overall it has collected Rs 39.13 lakh so far.

According to BMC rules, a fine of Rs 200 is levied on anyone who is found spitting at public spaces and as per the BMC data, highest amount of recovery has been made from A ward (Colaba). Around Rs 6.15 lakh have been collected from this ward, followed by Rs 6.12 lakh from L ward (Kurla) and Rs 4.52 lakh from C ward (Kalbadevi and Bhuleshwar).

The lowest recovery is being made from T ward (Mulund) from where Rs 11,600 has been collected since the penalty of fines were introduced in 2006, followed by Rs 20,000 collected from E ward (Byculla).

"The areas from where high fine amount is recovered are commercial areas and records heavy footfall," said a senior official of the Solid Waste Management department.

Earlier on June the BMC had floated a proposal of raising the fine amount to Rs 1,200.

"The decision to hike the amount is an internal decision of the BMC. We are doing it so that the number of violators can be controlled. Spitting in public spaces can lead to the spread of many infectious diseases, including COVID-19 and Tuberculosis. However we are awaiting final confirmation from senior authorities, " the official said.

Earlier on June 1, the BMC had collected around Rs 28.67 lakh in fine amount.