19 February,2017 08:26 AM IST | | Shashank Rao
Plans to clean garbage and paan stains daily at Churchgate and CST
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), in keeping with its reputation of getting extra busy during election time, has announced that it will clean up two of Mumbai's most used subways - at Churchgate and CST. The civic body had revamped both subways - CST in 2014 and Churchgate in December last year - with new wall and floor tiles and LED lights. But, BMC claims, the hawkers throw garbage and spit on walls.
"We have invited tenders for the subway clean-up. We will ensure that garbage and stains on the walls are removed. The problem is that hawkers do nothing to ensure the subways are maintained properly," said a BMC official. The civic body claims that they will now keep six people in each subway, who will work in two shifts to mop the floor and clear the garbage strewn by hawkers and commuters. This will start from March.
The BMC claims that it had issued notices to the shops at Churchgate and CST subways in May 2016, contending that they were overcrowded because of the shops and that the space was needed for civic amenities. The civic authority wanted kiosks and video walls for dissemination of information on civic issues. But, in November 2016, the Bombay High Court quashed the BMC notice to shop owners to vacate the subways.
The CST and Churchgate subways were revamped in 2014 and 2016, but quickly became filled with garbage once again thanks to the hawkers
