BMC to have a dedicated dept to look after parking facilities

MUMBAI: The Mumbai Parking Authority (MPA), which operates like a technical committee under the civic body, will soon be converted into an independent department tasked with offering convenient and affordable solutions to vehicle users. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to send a proposal to the state government to bring the MPA under its administrative set-up.

“The inclusion of the MPA in the civic administrative structure will require amendments to the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act. Therefore, the proposal will require clearance in the assembly,” additional municipal commissioner (projects) P. Velrasu, who is also in-charge of this project, said. The BMC has proposed the MPA with an objective to set up the country’s first exclusive body to oversee and strengthen the parking infrastructure in a city.

According to officials, the final draft of the MPA’S administrative set-up will be sent to the urban development department, following which it will be tabled in the monsoon session of the assembly for approval.

Currently, the MPA consists of urban planners who are appointed on a contractual basis.

Velrasu said once the proposal was cleared, the MPA would directly be part of the BMC administration and work like any other civic department. “It will also be able to recruit and hire employees and implement its own plans. At present, it is just a panel of urban planners carrying out surveys and doing research on implementing proposals on the ground.”

Last year, the BMC standing committee had cleared the proposal of forming the authority. It has appointed former IAS officer Ramakant Jha as an advisor and roped in the Tata Institute of Social Sciences along with several urban planners to do the groundwork.

Officials said the key aspects in the first stage included mapping the city’s available spaces that could be used as parking lots, creating a legal framework, doing a ward-wise survey, and fixing the parking fees and fines. They said the BMC was also planning to introduce smart parking management strategies.