Mumbai Hoarding Tragedy

Context: At least 16 people were killed when a massive 250-tonne advertisement hoarding on Government Railway Police land in Mumbai\'s Ghatkopar collapsed during a dust storm. In the wake of this tragedy, it is important for the safety regulations pertaining to hoardings to be examined and for the legal responsibility for the event to be determined.

Safety Norms Apply to Hoardings:

• Local bodies issue licenses for advertisement hoardings, with specific regulations varying by location.

• In Mumbai, the Mumbai Municipal Corporation (MMC) Act of 1888, amended over time, mandates that the written permission of the Municipal Commissioner is necessary for erecting such structures.

• The Policy Guidelines for Display of Advertisements 2018 requires structural stability certification from a registered structural engineer as a prerequisite for erecting hoardings.

• Additionally, the policy guidelines dictate that hoardings existing as of May 1, 2014, must be reinstalled to incorporate structural stability requirements.

• From a technical standpoint, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) provides specifications for wind loads on hoardings and outlines formulae for calculating force coefficients applicable to these wind-facing structures.

Factors Leading to Ghatkopar Incident	Legal Responsibility for Ghatkopar Incident
he massive hoarding did not meet size norms.	The government and owners of private structures are legally responsible for ensuring compliance with size regulations and overall safety standards
Safety norms were apparently liberalized to tap the city’s full financial potential	Various entities are responsible for ensuring adherence to safety norms, including the government agencies responsible for formulating and implementing policies and the owners of the hoarding structures.
The Mumbai Municipal Corporation (MMC) Act 1888 provides some regulatory exemptions to hoardings on railway land	The government, as well as the agencies involved in regulatory exemptions, are responsible for ensuring that safety standards are upheld, irrespective of exemptions granted.
Administrative lethargy was cited as a reason for not enforcing safety laws on hoardings.	Individuals and agencies responsible for enforcement, including the Government Railway Police, are legally accountable for their failure to uphold safety laws and regulations, leading to administrative negligence
No database of permits was available, indicating a lack of oversight.	Government bodies responsible for issuing permits and maintaining records, such as the Mumbai Municipal Corporation, bear legal responsibility for ensuring the availability of accurate permit databases and regulatory compliance.
Extreme weather events exposed weak infrastructure links.	Government agencies responsible for infrastructure maintenance and safety, along with private entities owning structures, are legally liable for failing to ensure the structural integrity of hoardings, particularly during extreme weather conditions.

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