The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has issued a show-cause notice to the Larsen & Toubro-HCC joint venture executing a package of the Mumbai Coastal Road (south) project over the alleged use of excavation material from private construction sites without mandatory transportation permissions.
The civic body has directed the contractor to stop backfilling work with the material until it receives clearance. The joint venture has been given 72 hours to explain why the material should not be removed at its own cost and why further action should not be initiated.
The notice follows an inspection by the BMC’s solid waste management department on October 1 at the coastal stretch between Haji Ali and PDP Garden. Officials found backfilling activity in progress and, after checking vehicle details and challans, reported that the earth being used had been brought from private building construction sites across Mumbai.
According to the notice, the developers and transporters concerned had not obtained mandatory permission from the BMC or the competent authority to transport the excavation material. The civic body said this amounted to a violation of the project’s tender conditions, which require filling material to be sourced only from authorised quarries or other approved sources with valid permissions.
The BMC has asked the contractor to submit documents including the source of the material, valid transportation permissions, royalty challans and geotechnical test reports. It has also sought a statement showing the quantity of material brought to the site and details of the approved sources. The civic body warned that an unsatisfactory response within the stipulated period could lead to further action without additional notice.
The notice cites the Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules of 2016 and 2025, directions of the Bombay High Court concerning the illegal transportation of earth and debris, and the project’s contractual conditions and technical specifications. The action comes days after the BMC launched the Mumbai Debris Control and Tracking System, or MDCTS, to track construction and demolition waste from the site where it is generated to an authorised unloading location.
A senior BMC official said the objective was to improve accountability by linking construction and demolition waste to its source and final destination. The civic body has also instructed its officials to take action against private developers found transporting construction and demolition material without the required permission.
From October 12, the BMC has been imposing a penalty of ₹25,000 per violation on vehicles carrying construction and excavation waste without an authorised and active tracking system. The measure extends the compliance focus beyond the coastal road site to the wider movement of construction waste across Mumbai.
An L&T spokesperson said the company had received the notice from the BMC’s solid waste management department regarding the source of backfilling material at a section of the project. The spokesperson said compliance with applicable rules, permissions and contract conditions was a priority and that the company remained committed to resolving the matter promptly and delivering the project to the required standards.
