India, April 26 -- The BMC is set to open up civic works to labour cooperatives, with Mayor Ritu Tawde indicating that a formal decision will follow after consultations with municipal commissioner Ashwini Bhide and other stakeholders.

The assurance came at a training camp for labour cooperative societies organised by the Mumbai Konkan Divisional Labour Cooperative Federation at Kohinoor Hall in Dadar on Friday. Tawde said that nearly 700 to 800 labour cooperatives operating in Mumbai could be brought into the civic fold, with smaller works likely to be allocated to them.

The programme, held under the leadership of Maharashtra State Cooperative Union president and MLC Pravin Darekar, was inaugurated by the mayor in the presence of deputy...