Mumbai: BMC commissioner Ashwini Bhide on Saturday issued a series of directives to civic officials, emphasizing the need for cleanliness, encroachment-free spaces, and visual uniformity across all municipal hospitals, clinics, and healthcare facilities. She also set a May 31 deadline for the completion of ongoing roadworks across the city.
Healthcare Facilities Overview
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) currently operates more than 500 healthcare facilities, including health centres, maternity homes, specialty hospitals, and 'Aapla Dawakhana' clinics. These facilities collectively cater to over two crore citizens annually. Civic officials noted that the BMC has 14,653 hospital beds at present, with an additional 4,556 beds expected to be added once new hospitals become operational.
Directives for Hospitals
Bhide directed officials to ensure structural safety audits, timely repairs, and regular maintenance of hospital buildings. She stressed the importance of adequate housekeeping and security staff, uninterrupted water and power supply, strict fire safety compliance, and regular disinfection of toilets in hospitals and clinics. These measures aim to improve the overall quality of healthcare services provided to the public.
Roadworks Deadline and Quality Standards
Bhide instructed that all ongoing road projects should be completed by May 31. She emphasized that roads should not be repaired in patches but completed from one end to the other in a uniform and high-quality manner. In locations where concrete roads cannot be completed this season, officials were told to lay high-quality mastic roads instead. She also directed engineers to ensure roads remain level and free of uneven surfaces by carrying out milling works wherever required.
Traffic Safety Measures
Bhide instructed officials to reinstall speed breakers near schools, hospitals, and other sensitive locations. Additionally, she called for the use of thermoplastic markings and rumble strips to improve traffic safety across the city.
Monsoon Preparedness Review
During a separate review of monsoon preparedness, Bhide directed officials to ensure that no manholes remain open during the rainy season and that protective grills are installed on all manholes before the monsoon onset. She also asked departments to prepare long-term plans for flood-prone 'chronic spots' across Mumbai, aiming to mitigate waterlogging and related issues.
Additional Information
For reference, readers can check daily updates on gold and silver rates, bank holidays, public holidays, air quality index (AQI), and weather conditions in Mumbai.
About the Author: Richa Pinto is a special correspondent with The Times of India, covering urban governance and climate change issues. With over a decade of experience in field reporting, she has written extensively on various civic issues affecting Mumbaikars. She graduated in journalism from St Xavier's College, Mumbai, and later pursued a three-year law degree (L.L.B.) from the University of Mumbai.
