A massive billboard in Mumbai collapsed during a storm, killing 17 people and injuring 74 others. A police investigation revealed that the billboard was three times larger than the legal limit and was built on soft soil despite warnings from an excavator operator. The chargesheet accuses Ego Media, the company responsible for the billboard, and several government officials of negligence and collusion.
The excavator operator had recommended a soil test, which would have taken 15 days, but Ego Media ignored the warning and proceeded with construction. The investigation also found that former GRP Commissioner Quaiser Khalid, who granted approval for the billboard, allegedly used loopholes in the law to award the project to Ego Media without a tender. BMC licence inspector Sunil Dalvi, who issued a notice to Ego Media over the illegal hoarding, later withdrew it, raising concerns about his contact with the company.
The tragedy highlights a pattern of bending rules and disregarding public safety in approving illegal billboards in Mumbai. The Maharashtra Chief Minister claims that all hoardings in BMC areas are legal, but a BMC survey found that 99 out of 306 hoardings on Railway authority land are larger than the permitted size.
