BMC tells organisers of Standard Charted Marathon to pay Rs 5 crore dues in 24 hours or face action
Representational Image. Courtesy: List.ly
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has asked organisers of the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon to shell out Rs 5.48 crore in the next 24 hours, failing which they might have to face action for defacing the city.
According to a civic official, the office of superintendent of licenses had asked the event management firm, M/s Procam International, to pay Rs 5.48 crore to the A ward municipal office while granting permission for displaying advertisements in the form of hoardings, brandings, laser show etc during the marathon.
Since the amount was not paid, the ward office sent a notice to the organisers to pay the dues immediately.
The BMC has also threatened the organisers with action under section 328/328A of MMC Act (dealing with display of advertisements) if they fail to pay the amount by 2 pm on Saturday. The marathon will take place tomorrow, January 15.
“The organisers are directed to pay the advertisement fee, ground rent and security deposit amounting to Rs 5.48 crore in A ward municipal office within 24 hours from the receipt of this letter failing which all the advertisements displayed by the means of boards, brandings and lesser show will be removed and legal action as prescribed in the Act will be initiated further,” reads the BMC’s notice.
Officials also say that organiser earn a lot of money from the event, but request various exemptions from the BMC on the grounds that the marathon is a charity event.
Every year, for the last 13 years, the civic body supports the marathon by beautifying areas along the route, co-coordinating with other departments for security and travel arrangements, painting the sides of the roads and providing additional facilities. It also cleans up before and after the event.
“The event is a commercial one. Over the last 13 years, the BMC has given enough concessions and exemptions as the marathon was always promoted as a charity event. In 2017, however, we have decided not to provide any exemptions, but will charge organisers as we would organisers of other commercial events,” said BMC Chief Ajoy Mehta.
The organisers, meanwhile, have issued a statement that reads, “The BMC is an integral part of the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon journey. Without their support, an event of this magnitude would not have been successful for 13 years. We are thankful to them for their co-operation and are working closely with them to address the matter.”
Earlier this week, the BMC also denied permission to organisers of Sunburn, featuring French DJ David Guetta, to host their concert at the Mahalaxmi racecourse citing their failure to acquire the necessary permissions.
