At a Glance
- BMC issued a circular on 2 September 2026 mandating new undertakings from Architects/Licensed Surveyors and Developers for IOD and Amended Plan approvals
- The undertaking makes them personally responsible for non-compliance with any stop-work notice tied to air pollution mitigation measures
- Consequences include suspension of license, revocation of development permission under Regulation 12 of DCPR 2034
- Unauthorized work after a stop-work notice attracts a penalty of 100% of premium rates, with no relief even where regulatory concessions apply
- The move follows Bombay High Court directions in Suo Moto PIL No. 3 of 2023 and recommendations of the High Power Committee (HPC) monitoring Mumbai’s air pollution mitigation compliance
The Circular and Its Background
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s Chief Engineer (Development Planning) issued Circular No. CHE/DP/14598 on 2 September 2026, directing all zonal staff to build new conditions into the approval process for Intimation of Disapproval (IOD) and Amended Plans across the city.
The circular traces its origin to the Bombay High Court’s order in Suo Moto PIL No. 3 of 2023, which led to the constitution of a High Power Committee tasked with monitoring compliance of air pollution prevention and control directions across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The committee, chaired by judges of the Bombay High Court, has held multiple meetings since early 2026, with the fourth and fifth sessions taking place in March and April this year. Those meetings, the circular notes, focused particular attention on construction and demolition activity as a driver of air pollution and flagged continuing negligence among project proponents on mitigation compliance.
Approval for the new conditions was granted by the Municipal Commissioner in two stages, on 18 August 2026 and again on 31 August 2026, before the circular was formally issued to zonal offices.
What the New Conditions Require
The circular introduces two nearly identical conditions, one applicable at the IOD stage and one at the Amended Plans stage, requiring a registered undertaking from the Architect or Licensed Surveyor and the Developer.
Under the condition for Amended Plans, the undertaking must state that the signatory shall be held responsible for non-compliance of any stop-work notice issued due to failure to implement air pollution mitigation measures, and shall be liable for any action including suspension of license and revocation of development permission as per Regulation 12 of DCPR 2034. It further states that unauthorized work carried out after issuance of a stop-work notice will be liable for penalty at 100% of premium rates, irrespective of any concession in regulation under which the development is proposed.
The condition listed for IOD approvals in the circular carries language stating the undertaking “shall not be submitted and not adhered to,” which runs contrary to both the evident intent of the circular and the parallel wording used for Amended Plans. This may be a drafting error in the document as issued, and project proponents and professionals would be well advised to seek written clarification from BMC’s Development Planning department on the applicable requirement before relying on either version.
Who It Applies To and What’s at Stake
The directive is addressed to all zonal offices, including Deputy Chief Engineers (Building Proposals) for City, Eastern Suburbs, Western Suburbs I and II, and the Special Cell, meaning it applies uniformly across Mumbai’s building permission zones rather than being restricted to any one area.
By requiring a personally signed undertaking rather than a general corporate compliance clause, BMC has shifted individual professional and financial exposure directly onto Architects, Licensed Surveyors, and Developers. A license suspension or revocation of development permission would have direct consequences for a professional’s ability to practice or a project’s ability to proceed, while the 100% premium rate penalty for unauthorized post-notice work represents a significant cost exposure that explicitly cannot be offset by any concession the project might otherwise enjoy under applicable regulations.
Why This Matters for the Sector
The circular signals that court-driven oversight of construction-related air pollution is now being built directly into BMC’s plan-approval pipeline rather than functioning only as a post-facto enforcement mechanism. For developers and construction professionals across Mumbai, this means air pollution mitigation compliance will need to be treated as a precondition tied to personal liability at the paperwork stage, not merely a site-level obligation to be managed after approvals are secured.
Given the scale of the penalties involved and the potential impact on licenses and development permissions, industry stakeholders will likely be watching closely for further clarificatory circulars from BMC, particularly on the apparent inconsistency in the IOD-stage condition.
