After a hiatus of two years, on April 2, BMC’s new team of Clean-Up Marshals flocked the streets of Mumbai to penalise citizens for littering, garbage burning and illegal dumping of waste. These teams have been deployed on a pilot basis in two areas for now - A-ward (Colaba and Churchgate area) and C ward (Kalbadevi and Marine Lines).

Once the pilot project is successful, BMC is slated to deploy up to 750 clean-up marshals, where 30 marshals will be deployed in each ward.

Offenders will be levied fines, anywhere between ₹200 to ₹1000, for spitting, littering, urinating or defecating in public. Unlike before, this time, to maintain transparency and initiate quick action, penalties/fines will also be collected online through a mobile application, said reports. Marshals will issue penalty receipts to offenders via the application.

Those who want to pay the fine in cash can do so and the rest can scan the QR code on the receipt to make digital payments. The app will also have a geo-tagging feature, to ensure that Marshalls do not cross their designated areas, added a BMC official.