MUMBAI, April 22 -- Nearly half of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC's) Environment and Climate Change Department budget for 2025-26 remained unspent, with funds lapsing due to staffing shortages, infrastructure gaps and procedural delays, senior BMC officials said. The issue was flagged by Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator Sachin Padwal during the ongoing budget session on Friday, where Padwal alleged significant underutilisation of the department's funds. He claimed that 73% of the allocated Rs.113 crore budget had lapsed, with only Rs.31.16 crore, about 27%, spent during the financial year. Raising concerns over worsening air quality levels in the city, he argued that such underutilisation had aggravated pollution and reflected poorly on the civic body's response to environmental challenges. Senior BMC officials, however, contested these figures, stating that the Rs.113 crore cited was the initial proposed outlay and not the final budget. They said that in October 2025, the department's revised estimate was brought down to Rs.76.15 crore. Of this, Rs.38.52 crore was utilised, indicating an expenditure of roughly 50%, with the remaining funds lapsing at the end of the financial year. Explaining the underspending, officials pointed out that the department was in its first financial year of operations after being established in April 2024, which led to delays in execution. A senior official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it took time for administrative systems and project frameworks to stabilise. The department also faced acute manpower shortages, functioning with only nine officials for a significant part of the year. The staff strength has since increased to 29 ,including 3 scientists, a deputy commissioner, a deputy chief engineer, Assistant engineers, and sub-engineers deployed across administrative wards. Infrastructure limitations further slowed implementation. Officials said the department did not have dedicated operational space for much of the year, affecting planning and coordination. Of the Rs.39 crore allocated for the procurement of battery-operated dust suction machines, only Rs.20.8 crore was spent, leaving Rs.18.2 crore unutilised. A separate proposal to introduce a misting system aimed at controlling dust pollution was shelved after a senior official deemed it unviable. Under other budget heads, Rs.15 crore was earmarked for various environmental measures, but only Rs.6.6 crore was utilised. For the 2026-27 financial year, it has been allocated Rs.159 crore. Officials said the higher outlay will be used to carry forward incomplete works and scale up interventions aimed at improving the city's environmental performance. Civic activist Zoru Bhathena criticised the civic body's approach and said "The BMC is spending massive amounts on projects that harm city's environment. Allocating a few crores to 'fix' their self-created destruction is not going to make any difference."...