City: Mumbai

55% of Mumbai’s population lives in slums, and is routinely excluded from urban planning. Dr Lalitha Kamath, an urban planning expert, has found that it is precisely by design that this structure is created and maintained. The State does not treat all residents of the city equally, and this is just another form of violence. Its instruments are the seemingly technical project and development plans. Lalitha is an associate professor at the Centre for Urban Policy and Governance, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai. Her work includes Participolis: Consent and Contention in Neoliberal Urban Governance (2013) and the forthcoming…

Located south of Mumbai is Panje, one of four neighbouring villages, Panje, Funde, Dongri and Bokadvira spanning 289 hectares of wetland. Every winter, 1,50,000 migratory birds of over 50 species return to roost here. Of them, the Indian skimmer was recently upgraded from vulnerable to endangered. To some, however, this land is prime location to acquire for constructions, due to its close proximity to all forms of transport, including the upcoming Navi Mumbai airport. In 2019, Reliance Industries (RIL) sub-leased 4000 acres, including Panje, from the Navi Mumbai Special Economic Zone (NMSEZ) to develop the area into a "Global Economic…

The redevelopment of historic neighbourhoods, more often than not, are perceived as a threat to culture. This notion is not unfounded, as conservation is a complicated process involving lived experiences and infrastructure that, to many, is home; built through decades of a community’s history and its people. Is it, then, possible to evolve a community through development while preserving its culture entirely? Mumbai's Bhendi Bazaar is an interesting case to study in this regard. Old Bhendi Bazaar. Photo: SBUT Present day Bhendi Bazaar. Photo: SBUT Efforts to rehabilitate South Mumbai’s 150-year-old Bhendi Bazaar is home to more than 20,000 people and 3200…

First ‘pod’ hotel at Mumbai Central railway station Indian railways’ first pod hotel was inaugurated at Mumbai Central station on Wednesday, November 17th, by Raosaheb Danve, minister of state of railways. The hotel is spread over 3000 square feet and is located on the first floor of the station building, with facilities such as 48 capsule-like rooms and separate pods for women and differently-abled persons. Affordable overnight accommodation is also available. For 12 hours, passengers will have to pay Rs 999, and Rs 1,999 for 24 hours.  Source: Hindustan Times Private hospital in Mumbai becomes first provide free COVID-19 vaccination …

At Citizen Matters, we review the promises made in the respective electoral manifestos by all four leading electoral parties, namely, the Shiv Sena (SS), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Indian National Congress (INC) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) ahead of the BMC elections in February 2022.  We review whether these promises made by them have been delivered, and where Mumbai currently stands on these issues. To kick start the series, we look at the promises made on the issue of providing clean and safe water supply.   Water requirement in Mumbai  Mumbai currently provides 188 litres per capita per…

Officials claim that they’re constructing public toilets in the city and allocating funds, but previously built toilets in Mumbai are inaccessible and pose risks to diseases.  In October, Jagdeep Desai, wrote on twitter, about a public toilet constructed in Talvali Gaon, Navi Mumbai by the NMMC, claiming it has low ceilings, narrow doors and entrances, and no water. “The lack of consideration in making these roadside restrooms is apparent. Some are made only so they (the authorities) can audit the budgets assigned to them.” Jagdeep said. Short and narrow public toilet in Talvali gaon. Photo: Jagdeep Desai The cost of…

Mumbai is reported to have only 1.24 sqm open space per person. This includes gymkhanas, cemeteries, storm water drains, sewage treatment plans, etc, so even that paltry number is exaggerated. The areas coloured green in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)’s Development Plan 2034 to signify ‘open spaces’ are misleading, since many have buildings and slums in their place. According to a study done as part of the ‘Harita: The Green Footprint’ fellowship, the real figure is only around 1 sqm per person. The fellowship mapped and graded 500 parks in the city. The report concluded that only 18% of the…

On Friday, November 12, Citizen Matters hosted a webinar on fire safety in Mumbai’s high rises. Following a story that covered the unfortunate fire incident at the 60-storey Avighna Park in Lower Parel, 3 weeks ago, the panel sought to discuss fire safety in Mumbai’s buildings by including subsequent fire tragedies in the city in recent weeks.  The panel consisted of Hemant Parab, Chief Fire Officer, Mumbai Fire Brigade and Chandrashekhar Prabhu, an Indian politician, architect, professor, urban planner and management expert. Arathi Manay, community anchor at Citizen Matters Mumbai and an experienced market research professional, moderated the discussion.  Read…

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has allocated funds to build more public toilets in the city between 2021-22. However, promises made in the previous years remain unfulfilled and public sanitation services in Mumbai are largely inaccessible. What are some of the conditions impacting the construction of public toilets?  In 2020, civic authorities had cleared proposals for 22,770 toilets across the city, but only 20 percent were built till August-September of the same year.  That didn't stop the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) from allocating  Rs 323 crore towards building 20,000 more public toilets in February 2021. Public toilet at Akurli road.…

99% of Mumbai vaccinated at least once, according to BMC data Ninety-nine percent of Mumbai’s population has been vaccinated at least once, according to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) data. BMC said it administered 15.067 million vaccine doses (both doses) until November 10. This includes vaccine doses administered at all private, municipal, state and central government-operated vaccination centres since January 16 this year, when the vaccination drive began across the country. The city's eligible population is 9,236,500. “So far, a total of 9,204,950 beneficiaries have been given their first dose, of which 5,862,933 beneficiaries have received both their doses.” A BMC…