Mumbai: Prepare to pay Rs 10,000 fine for illegal parking from July 7

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Is the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) looking at making parking an additional source of revenue or is it just aiming at decongesting roads by putting an end to the illegal parking menace? Whatever it might be, from July 7 the civic body doesn't want vehicles parked on roads. After increasing parking charges, it now plans to identify roads in a 1-km radius of public parking lots and mark them as no-parking zones. People found parking in these areas would be fined anything between Rs 1,000 and Rs 10,000 and in case of a repeat offence, vehicles would be towed away. No-parking boards would also be put up on arterial roads.

Sources said the BMC has asked assistant municipal commissioners of all wards to appoint contractors along with whom ex-Army men would enforce the rule and collect fines. They would also have to give challans for fines charged for wrongly parked vehicles. However, with contractors being roped in, BMC ward officials would now have an additional responsibility to check that there is no corruption.

Requesting anonymity, a civic official said, "We will have to be extra careful as contractors will be given the responsibility of collecting fines. Modalities regarding placing them under supervision need to be worked out."

Further in a meeting with the deputy commissioners of all zones, municipal commissioner Pravin Pardeshi said that signboards should be put up to make people aware of the nearest public parking lots. He also said that tenders should be floated for hiring vehicle-towing machines, which should then be given to the assistant commissioner of police (traffic) for implementing the plan.

Also Read: Mumbai: Special body, not traffic police, will now control parking policy

A senior civic official, who was present in the meeting, said, "The commissioner has instructed all deputy municipal commissioners to meet joint commissioner traffic, Madhukar Pande, and chalk out the plan to be implemented from July 7."

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