Mumbai, February 25 In a move aimed at regulating street vending, the Mumbai municipal body announced a QR code-based certification system for authorized street vendors as part of the Budget 2026-27 presented on Wednesday.
Notably, Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde had vowed stringent action against illegal hawkers and officials allegedly aiding them after taking office.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani presented a budget of Rs 80,952.56 crore, representing an 8.77 per cent increase over the 2025-26 estimate of Rs 74,427.41 crore for India's richest municipal body.
The BMC stated that the process of issuing QR-based certificates to authorized vendors was underway. This move aims to create a verifiable digital database of legitimate vendors and curb unauthorized hawking through on-site verification using scannable codes.
The QR initiative is part of a broader technological push, which includes the deployment of AI-enabled assistance for citizens and civic staff, and advanced video analytics software linked to over 1,150 CCTV cameras for enhanced urban surveillance.
The Budget also made substantial allocations for infrastructure and transport projects. A sum of Rs 9,650 crore has been earmarked for the Bridges Department, covering projects such as the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR) and the northern stretch of the Mumbai Coastal Road from Versova to Dahisar.
The Roads and Traffic Department has been allocated Rs 6,875 crore, primarily for the concreting of major roads and junction improvements.
In addition, the BMC stated that digital payment facilities for property tax and water charges through UPI and QR codes would be facilitated in the coming year, signaling a wider shift towards cashless civic transactions.
Tawde had asserted that with the BJP in power in the city, the civic administration would act decisively against those who had allegedly procured bogus birth certificates and against officials found complicit.
A day earlier, she told reporters that 237 fake birth certificates issued by BMC officials had been cancelled, although the original documents were yet to be recovered.
"As many as 237 bogus birth certificates were issued and have now been cancelled. However, the originals are still with the Bangladeshi nationals residing in Mumbai. Officials have informed me that these will be recovered within a month," she said after chairing a high-level meeting.
Expressing dissatisfaction with the timeline, the mayor said the documents must be seized within 15 days.
"If senior officials are helping such anti-nationals and shielding them, we will have to take strict action. If they fail to discharge their duty, I will move a resolution in the meeting to initiate stringent action against them," she had warned.