Mumbai: In a major push to clean up the city’s coastline, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) has instructed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to immediately step up sanitation operations across all major beaches.Following a high-level review meeting to assess coastal hygiene, MPCB chairperson Siddesh Kadam directed civic officials to conduct direct site inspections and deploy additional heavy machinery and cleanup crews without delay to address deteriorating conditions at popular stretches like Juhu, Versova, Dadar, and Gorai.A key focus of the review was intercepting marine waste before it damages coastal ecosystems. Highlighting the continuous flow of trash carried by city storm drains straight into the sea, pollution board officials urged civic authorities to trap plastic debris inside drain networks said a press noteWith festival preparations underway, the pollution watchdog also ordered a strict crackdown on single-use plastics across the metropolitan region.Civic enforcement teams will be carrying out drives against non-compliant vendors, with specific focus on enforcing the ban on thermocol and artificial plastic flowers commonly used for Ganesh Chaturthi decorations.
