City: Mumbai

Farzana Shaikh, a citizen from Kalina, Santacruz, worries as most of her family members catch stomach illnesses. As soon as she opens the water taps, only muddy water comes out. "During monsoon season, drinking water becomes contaminated; we cannot use it for drinking. We buy Bisleri for drinking, as the BMC water that comes into our home is very dirty. This happens every year in our building; people in my own house have diarrhoea and other stomach infections," says Farzana. Various stomach diseases spread due to contaminated water supplied to people's homes. Pic: Farzana Shaikh Malaria, dengue, leptospirosis, chikungunya, gastroenteritis,…

The city of Mumbai is currently at the peak of the monsoon season that significantly impacts the lives of its residents. While these rains are vital for replenishing water sources and sustaining agriculture, they also pose several challenges for the city's infrastructure and residents. Water logging, traffic jams, health risks and infrastructure problems, the list is endless. These problems resurface year after year. We at Citizen Matters Mumbai, believe that the citizens best know the problems they encounter in their vicinity. Hence they are able to offer the most practical and workable solutions to these problems. We have always had…

Coastal cities have been centers of growth and development for centuries, but the same areas that once thrived are now vulnerable to the consequences of climate change. Megacities like Mumbai and coastal cities across the world are particularly at risk as the global temperatures increase. As the sea levels rise, they pose unprecedented risks of floods and storm surges, affecting human lives and property. By 2070, Mumbai is projected to be home to over 11 million people in areas susceptible to rising sea levels and heightened flooding. That is almost four times more than current exposed population of 2.7 million.…

Dharavi, Asia's largest slum is in the heart of Mumbai. Spread over 535 acres, approximately 8.5 lakh people live in approximately 55,000 dwelling units in Dharavi with a population density of 3.4 lakh per square km. One of the many communities, living in Dharavi for decades, is the traditional potters community. 'Kumbhar' means pots and 'Wada' means colony. Dharavi's Kumbharwada is where the magic of clay has been happening for decades together. Kumbharwada occupies about 12.5 acres in Dharavi, and is home to 500 potters’ families. A well-settled and internationally famous colony, however, struggles during the rains. Production reduces drastically…

For a community to whom open spaces are a luxury, encroachment of our open spaces comes as a big pinch. In the past few months, we have seen two of our vital open spaces getting 'kidnapped'. This has affected our access to these spaces - a public library and a ground. So, on 18th May 2023, we, the residents of Govandi gathered in front of a library at the Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Udyan to protest against the encroachment on the open spaces. Govandi is part of the M-East ward, which is one of the poorest and has the lowest Human…

Red alert in wettest July, holiday for educational institutions Mumbai rains did not take a pause this week, and the city recorded its wettest July ever with 1557.8 mm rain. The IMD issued a red alert on Thursday due to very heavy rains. The city was flooded in many areas. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) declared a holiday for schools and colleges on Thursday. On Friday, both the Colaba and Santacruz observatories recorded over 100 mm of rainfall within 24 hours. The northern suburbs, including Dahisar (237mm), Borivali (194mm), Vasai  (138mm), Thane (166mm), and Dahanu (224mm), experienced more intense rains.…

Amid the relentless downpour last week, Dnyaneshwar Paugul, accompanied by his daughter, Yogita, and 6-month-old granddaughter, were travelling from Mumbai city to Bhiwandi after seeking treatment for the little one at KEM hospital. As the local train made its way through the suburbs, heavy rains continued and soon the train stopped between Thakurli and Kalyan on flooded railway tracks. With no sign of the train moving, impatience and anxiety began to rise among the passengers. Some of them decided to get down and walk towards the nearest railway station. Among them were Paugul and his daughter, who held her ailing…

Two young labourers, 25-year-old Ramkrishna and 30-year-old Sudhir Das died of drowning in June, when they were cleaning an overflowing manhole in Govandi. Normally, the cleaning and repairs of sewer lines are done before the monsoon begins and not during heavy rains. "Why did they make the two men enter the manhole? Why wasn't the sewer line treated on time, before monsoons?", asks Rukhsana Nazim Mohammed Siddiquii, the ex-corporator of Govandi. Rukhsana says one of the major reasons why an incident like this happened, was because of absence of corporators, when various measures for monsoon preparedness were planned and undertaken. She…

Monsoon is a difficult time for the residents of Hanuman Nagar, especially those residing along the banks of the Poisar river. Officially, it may be the river, but practically it is a nullah or a storm water drain, which carries household garbage and even sewage waste.   As the rains intensify, the residents brace themselves for tough times. "It can flood anytime and we may not have enough time to save our belongings, so we start preparing as rains begin. We store our clothes in bundles, so that they can be thrown quickly to our loft to save them from flood…

What do we talk about when we talk about climate change? In Mumbai, most people hark back to the 2005 deluge. Between July 26 and 27 that year, the city received 944 mm of rain in 24 hours. Many parts of the city and its suburbs were flooded; the water rose to our knees, our waists, even our necks. According to a 1992 report by the Central Water Commission, this could be considered a once-in-a-hundred-years flood. Scientists predict that with global warming the frequency of extreme climate events is likely to increase in the future. So Mumbai’s once-in-a-hundred-years flood could…