City: Mumbai

Gokhale bridge to be re-opened in Sept 2023 Despite all the delays and the danger it poses to the trains passing by below, there has been no headway as to who - the BMC or railways - will demolish the Gokhale bridge in Andheri, Mumbai. The Gokhale bridge was partially closed in 2018 and completely shut down this past week after structural audits revealed that the bridge was corroded and degraded. As the BMC claims to have no experience in demolishing bridges above railway tracks, it is banking on the Railways doing so in the next month. Tenders can then…

This is the second and final part in the series on skywalks in the city. Read the first part here. Fifteen years after they were commissioned in 2007, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is now attempting to make skywalks more people-friendly in Mumbai, by installing escalators wherever required.  The BMC has now appointed a consultant to study if, where and how escalators could be installed in the 23 skywalks in Mumbai. The most recently inaugurated 24th skywalk at Jogeshwari (E) already has an escalator installed in it. Escalators have already been sanctioned at five skywalks on a pilot project basis.  The Mumbai…

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will be spending over Rs 10 crore on the beautification of the M-east ward in the first phase. The ward authorities also plan to construct a clock tower at Indian Oil Nagar in the second phase of beautification. However, residents in the area believe the money could be used more efficiently. 33-year-old Kailash Aran, who works as a driver and resides in the slums of Annabhau Sathe Nagar, contends BMC needs to focus on keeping the area clean and ensuring the ward remains mosquito-free instead of such beautification projects that don't do much for the…

In its annual report titled ‘State of Policing and Law and Order in Mumbai, 2022’, PRAJA Foundation revealed that 98% of the total cases in Class II serious offences, including murder, crimes against women and cases under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act are pending for trial. In cases where the trials were completed, 86% ended in an acquittal or discharge. The data was based on findings from applications under the Right to Information (RTI) Act and data published by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). Read more: Is Mumbai really safe for its women? Data suggests otherwise…

The traffic on Akurli road, Kandivali, is not news. It is the main access road to all of Kandivali East, beginning at Kandivali railway station. From there, it passes Growel’s mall, cuts through the Western Express Highway (WEH), going on to Hanuman Nagar, Lokhandwala, Damu Nagar and Gautam Nagar, stopping only at the green expanse of Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP).  Despite the heavy traffic it has to carry, the road is just 90 feet wide. Shops and parked vehicles on either side further squeeze it, and many lanes intersect it linking the areas along the way.  Complaints have been…

The government recently announced that it will now ease the travel woes of residents by cutting travel time between South Mumbai and Navi Mumbai to 30 minutes. The Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) will soon launch a ferry service from Belapur in Navi Mumbai to Gateway of India. This forced me to do some research on this subject. CIDCO (City and Industrial Development Corporation) recently made two jetties within a distance of hardly 4 km from each other: one in Belapur at a reported cost of approximately Rs 10 crore, and another one in Nerul costing more than Rs 111 crore. Both were…

Air quality dips in city; Andheri in 'poor' category Mumbai’s air quality deteriorated on Monday and fell under the 'moderate' category on with Air Quality Index at 149, according to System of Air Quality Forecast and Research (SAFAR). It remained in moderate zone until Thursday, as the city recorded an AQI of 152. An AQI between 201 and 300 is considered 'poor', 301-400 'very poor' and 401-500 'severe', while the AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, between 51 and 100 ‘satisfactory’ and between 101 and 200 is ‘moderate’. Within the city, on Thursday, the data showed Worli’s AQI…

Most people do not know about an anganwadi worker’s responsibilities, they think this is a voluntary service that can be compensated with an honorarium. I share my story here to tell you about my work, my goals and my experiences as an anganwadi worker. I have been an anganwadi worker since 2002 and I recently completed 20 years in this role. Although my children were 12 and 9 years old respectively when I joined, I faced a lot of trouble managing my household responsibilities, ensuring they are cared for, picked up from school and fed while I went out to…

As proposals of building new skywalks in the city meet with stiff public opposition, Mumbai faces the dilemma of whether to continue building skywalks or to gradually phase them out.  Skywalks are elevated pedestrian walkways connecting various heavily targeted destinations either to railway stations or to other high-concentration commercial areas. The purpose of the skywalks is the efficient dispersal of commuters from congested areas to strategic locations, such as bus stations, taxi stands, shopping areas, etc, according to the MMRDA website. But opinions are divided on whether skywalks as an infrastructure project are useful or not. While the government is convinced…

On the morning of October 29th, 55-year-old Faiyaz Ahmed visited Lokmanya Tilak Municipal General Hospital (also known as Sion Hospital) along with his daughter for her medical check-up. However, he had no intention of getting himself checked. However, an announcement on the loudspeaker inside the hospital's OPD building changed his mind. The announcement said that anyone above the age of 30 who wanted to get screened for diabetes and hypertension could visit the free-of-cost, walk-in Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) Centre. "Abhi umar bhi ho gayi hai, socha sugar check karwa leta hoon. Kuch alag se taklif ho nahi rahi hai," Ahmed says.…