City: Mumbai

"I have a vivid memory from my childhood when I was about 8 years old. My grandfather took me to the Hanging Gardens, and I was absolutely thrilled. The trees, the open spaces to run, the panoramic views from the top – it all convinced me that no other garden could possibly be as beautiful as this one. This was in the 1980s, and my grandfather passed away not long after that. But the dearest memories I have with him are of those moments in this garden, playing around while he watched from a distance." "I hadn't thought about that…

Moraya re bappa moraya re… can't get this song out of my mind. Ganpati is not just a religious festival, but a celebration that unites society. That's what I observed while roaming the streets of Mumbai during the 10-day-long festival. The emotions connected with the arrival and departure of the Ganpati are an experience. After visiting different Ganpati pandals I realised, you don't have to be a Hindu to experience the love and spiritual connection that Bappa evokes within you. The birth of Lord Ganesha is celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm. It is so popular that people travel from…

37599 idols immersed on the last day of immersion As Mumbaikars bid goodbye to Bappa, a total of 37,599 idols were immersed on Anant Chaturthi. Out of which 31,322 were household ones and 5840 were sarvajanik idols. Out of these, 734 sarvajanik and 10,121 household idols were immersed in artificial ponds. The most famous Lalbaugcha Raja was immersed on Friday morning around 8.30 am. The procession started at 11 am on Thursday. The civic body spread awareness about the artificial pond immersion of Ganpati Idols. The BMC provided the citizens with artificial ponds. Pic: BMC Twitter To maintain the ease…

As the curtains fall on this year's monsoon season, let's take a moment to examine Mumbai's rainfall performance this year. Due to worries of El Nino, a climate pattern indicating abnormal Pacific Ocean warming, officials anticipated rain deficit. However, contrary to expectations, the weather systems aligned in such a way that Mumbai not only received substantial rainfall but also surpassed its average expectations, experiencing an abundance of rain during the past four months. Mumbai has received a remarkable 2956.4 mm of rainfall so far, with July marking an all-time high at 1,770 mm. However, the month of August was mostly…

Stalin Dayanand is an environmentalist who has spent two decades building citizen movements to protect wetlands and forests in Maharashtra. Environmental litigation, environmental education, and ground-level conservation are the planks of his activities. The director of Vanashakti—a conservation nonprofit in Mumbai—Stalin has been at the forefront of several environmental campaigns. These include the Save Aarey movement, the protest to protect Sindhudurg’s forests from mining, the Save Ulhas River project, and the pushback against constructing an international airport on wetlands in Navi Mumbai.        Stalin spoke to India Development Review about what it takes to build a people’s movement, why such movements…

Keeping the slum dwellers at the core of its planning, the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) scheme was initially conceptualised way back in 1995. With about half the Mumbai's population living in informal settlements, the SRA scheme is critical for ensuring better quality housing for all Mumbaikars. The city has about 2149 SRA projects, involving 5,29,434 proposed tenements and 2,49,887 tenements already handed over to people. As we saw in the first part of this series, the buildings are poorly maintained and affecting the not just quality of life but also causing extreme stress to the residents due to various issues.…

September has ended and we will soon bid goodbye to the monsoon season. Monsoons not only give new life to nature, but also drape the surroundings in lively greens. Starting now, we celebrate new lives, new crops and a lot of festivals. During monsoons, one can witness various interesting phenomena. One can hear frogs and toads croaking in and around rain puddles. A large number of butterfly species like Lime, Plain Tiger, Common Emigrant are spotted. Bees and moths also engage in extracting nectar from flowers that bloom in rain. Deep inside the forest, a lot of snakes come out…

Highest number of Ganpati pandals since 2018 Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations are back to pre-pandemic fervour this year, with more than 2700 mandals getting a green signal to set up their pandals. The highest since 2018, the civic body has been busy preparing for the festival and is gearing up for immersions now. The BMC approved 72% of the total 3767 applications. The final number of pandals could be even higher, said Naresh Dahibhavkar, president of the Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvay Samiti (BSGSS). The single-window system has been a success. Ramakant Biradar, deputy municipal commissioner, said, “Organisers are no longer required…

At the entrance of the Jankalyan Society at Dahisar, near the lift, a blackboard asks residents to clear their pending maintenance charges. Signed by the building's Mahila Mandal Sudhar Samiti (MMSS) or resident women's group, the note also urges residents that they would be able to offer better services to residents if maintenance dues are paid on time.  Though a number of garbage bins lie below their building, the provisional committee members of the Society are convinced that their building is cleaner and better maintained compared to other buildings provided by the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) Mumbai. Even so, at…

Ganesh Chaturthi, a beloved festival in Mumbai, is about enthusiastic celebrations, but increasingly nudging citizens to engage in deep environmental reflection. In recent years, there has been a notable shift towards embracing eco-friendly practices in the festival's preparations, particularly in the material used for the creation of Ganpati idols. According to Mumbai murtikars (idol-makers), the sale of eco-friendly idols have almost doubled this year. This shift marks a positive departure from the traditional use of Plaster of Paris (POP) idols, which can have detrimental effects on our water bodies after immersion. Many Ganesh mandals and families have taken the initiative…