City: Mumbai

On the afternoon of 26 November, 2023 a group of about 50 people gathered for a unique meeting at tribal activist Prakash Bhoir’s house at Mumbai’s Aarey forest. Members shared anecdotes, recalled incidents as they came together to commemorate their nine-year-long fight to save Aarey forest from concrete urban projects, especially the 33 hectare-Metro 3 car shed.  Dafli in hand, Prakash, a prominent tribal face from Mumbai now, sang a song he wrote on Aarey. He recalled the night of October 4, 2019, when his wife Pramila Bhoir was arrested for opposing the massive tree cutting.  “We were just going…

Amid a rise in COVID-19 cases attributed to the novel variant JN.1 of the virus, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) plans to escalate COVID-19 testing during the festive season. Despite the increase in COVID-19 cases, the positivity rate in Mumbai remains below 5%. Dr Sudhakar Shinde, additional commissioner of BMC, told Citizen Matters that the situation is well under control and no restrictions will be imposed. The BMC clarified that the city has not identified any cases of the JN.1 variant so far. According to BMC's data, as of December 24, Mumbai had a total of 77 COVID-19 positive cases…

Mask up but no need to worry, say docs  Just as we were gearing up to celebrate Christmas and New Year, a new Covid variant called JN.1, has been reported. As of now Mumbai has the maximum number of cases in the state.  Chief minister Eknath Shinde informed that the decision to form a task force to manage isolation, medication and other requirements in case of increase in the cases, will be taken soon. He emphasised that people should reinforce “Covid Appropriate Behaviour” such as masking up and testing. Maharashtra has not imposed any restrictions as of now.   Doctors…

International Mountain Day is celebrated on December 11th as a response to call by UNCED (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development). The aim is to raise awareness about the importance of the fragile ecosystems and to come up with different ways to sustain and prevent them from destruction of any kind. Forest, hills, plants and animals are my life. I was fortunate to grow amidst nature, wild animals and birds. Being a pahadan (the one who lives in the mountains), hills and mountains are in my blood. When I came to Kharghar in 2016, the hill, simply called the…

“It is such a tragedy that on the occasion of the death anniversary of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, who spent his entire life educating people, making them aware, in getting them their rights, you have taken a step towards privatisation of education,” says Sudhakar Sonavane, former mayor of Navi Mumbai.  He is referring to Maharashtra government's "Adopt A School" scheme, which educationists and parents believe is an invitation in disguise for private players to take over government schools, where the poorest in the state study. It was launched on December 5th in the presence of chief minister Eknath Shinde and school…

54-year-old Jyoti Kadam, who took voluntary retirement from being a writer with the Mumbai police to take care of her parents, feels lonely now.  Jyoti was widowed 22 years ago, when her son was just five months old and her daughter seven years old. She struggled throughout as a single working parent till she took voluntary retirement, only to take care of her mother suffering from Alzheimer's. Thereafter, she took care of her father, a paralysis patient.  Today, after her parents are no more and her children have grown up and started working, she has started pursuing her hobbies like…

Speed limits on major roads in fast-paced Mumbai   The Mumbai traffic police have declared speed limits on nine major roads of the city starting December 13th. The police said this was done to “prevent danger, obstruction and inconvenience to the public.” Some of these roads include, P.D Mello Road, Shahid Bhagat Singh Road ( 50 kmph), Haji Ali junction to Mahalaxmi Railway Station, Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road and flyovers including Amar Mahal Flyover and Veer Jijamata Bhosale Flyover.  The police said this measure was initiated to avoid accidents caused by overspeeding.   After the traffic police announced this on X (Twitter), the…

Tayappa Dhangar, who is 41 and lives in Andheri, needs heart valve replacement surgery. He works as waste picker and is eligible for the indigent patient scheme under a charitable trust hospital. However, a well-known charitable trust hospital in South Mumbai has refused to perform the surgery free of cost.  The hospital provided a surgery cost estimate of around Rs 15 lakh, with assistance limited to only two lakh rupees. Tayappa, who earns a daily wage of Rs 300, does not know how to gather the remaining Rs 13 lakh for the surgery. Tayappa's situation is not unique. Many individuals…

In September 2023, our citizen-led organisation—Govandi New Sangam Welfare Society—had its first major win when Bombay High Court ordered the removal of a biomedical waste incinerator from Shivaji Nagar in Govandi. We had filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in October 2022 seeking immediate action, and the Bombay High Court has ordered that the plant be shifted to an industrial area within two years. Govandi is part of the M-East ward, which is infamous for housing Mumbai’s largest dumping ground and its only biomedical waste incinerator. These factors have contributed to a high incidence of tuberculosis (TB), bronchitis, and other…

Mumbai second to Delhi in crimes against women Gone are the days when Mumbai was considered the safest place for women, suggest the latest National Crime Records Bureau figures. Mumbai ranked next to Delhi, which continues to be the most unsafe/dangerous city for women, with 14158 crimes, Mumbai was second with 6176 crimes in 2022.   Figures indicate that crimes against women, as well as overall crimes registered under the Indian Penal Code have gone up since 2020.  Apart from cases of molestation, Mumbai also recorded serious offences such as sexual assault, murders and other violent crimes. The cases of sexual…