Pavements to be made mandatory in Mumbai
In an effort to make pavements mandatory in Mumbai, the commissioner of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, BMC Subodh Kumar has said that the footpaths are a part of the road. The width of the road essentially comprises both the road and footpath on either side of the stretch. He cited that The Indian Road Congress asserts that footpaths should be at least 1.5 metres wide on both side of the road.
However this norm is widely violated. Commissioner himself acknowledged that pavements have not been made essential. BMC itself do not follow the norm and it is seen that on narrow roads there is footpath only on one side of the street. Sometimes, the footpath width has been narrowed to facilitate the movement of bigger vehicles, According to Section 3(W) of the BMC Act the definition of “street” includes a footway or pavement.
Source: The Times of India
