City: Mumbai

While the lockdown may have seen a comeback of birds and animals in urban areas, for forest officers, the period has also meant more work thwarting and catching miscreants in the forests in and around cities. For the first time, Maharashtra officials are conducting drone surveillance to monitor and protect the flora and fauna in the wilds. Maharashtra has about 6733 sq km of protected forests (including six national parks, 48 wildlife sanctuaries and three conservation reserves) covering over 3.03% of its total geographical area of 307,713 sq kms, as per the India State of Forest Report, 2019. Historically, a severely short-staffed…

They have been among the frontline corona virus warriors since March 25th. And also among those badly hit by the virus. With Mumbai in particular showing record daily jumps in positive cases, its policemen have suffered too. Take just one day, March 26th. According to the state health department, Maharashtra had a total of 3,041 new coronavirus patients on that day, of which 1889 were police personnel (207 officers and 1682 other ranks). Also, 20 policemen have died so far from the infection. Yet, they remain on the frontlines, manning high risk spots like containment centres and railway stations. And…

They have been among the frontline corona virus warriors since March 25th. And also among those badly hit by the virus. With Mumbai in particular showing record daily jumps in positive cases, its policemen have suffered too. Take just one day, March 26th. According to the state health department, Maharashtra had a total of 3,041 new coronavirus patients on that day, of which 1889 were police personnel (207 officers and 1682 other ranks). Also, 20 policemen have died so far from the infection. Yet, they remain on the frontlines, manning high risk spots like containment centres and railway stations. And…

“Hello Teacher,  kis ka accha hain? Mera ya uska?” “Mera, Mera” (Hello Teacher. Whose toy is better - hers or mine?” “Mine, Mine”) Two paper frogs, one green and one white, talking to one another animatedly. The voices in the background belong to children. A joyful WhatsApp forward on a Sunday morning led us to pursue this heartwarming story of children in the bastis crafting puppets to beat the stress brought on by COVID-19. The lockdown has placed enormous economic burden on the urban poor. There is a palpable gloom produced by a normal way of life coming to a…

“Hello Teacher,  kis ka accha hain? Mera ya uska?” “Mera, Mera” (Hello Teacher. Whose toy is better - hers or mine?” “Mine, Mine”) Two paper frogs, one green and one white, talking to one another animatedly. The voices in the background belong to children. A joyful WhatsApp forward on a Sunday morning led us to pursue this heartwarming story of children in the bastis crafting puppets to beat the stress brought on by COVID-19. The lockdown has placed enormous economic burden on the urban poor. There is a palpable gloom produced by a normal way of life coming to a…

Pisavali is a densely populated, low income neighbourhood. Most residents of the low income settlement are working in the informal sector. Many of the temporary residents in the basti are migrants from states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal without a permanent home in the city. After the sudden declaration of a nationwide lockdown starting on the 24th of March, only a few of the migrants were able to go back to their native villages. The majority however was stranded in Pisavali.  Map of Pisavali. Source: Google Earth Life became difficult given the precarious nature of employment for residents…

Pisavali is a densely populated, low income neighbourhood. Most residents of the low income settlement are working in the informal sector. Many of the temporary residents in the basti are migrants from states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal without a permanent home in the city. After the sudden declaration of a nationwide lockdown starting on the 24th of March, only a few of the migrants were able to go back to their native villages. The majority however was stranded in Pisavali.  Map of Pisavali. Source: Google Earth Life became difficult given the precarious nature of employment for residents…

The government may have finally opened up movement for stranded migrant workers after a gap of 40 days, but their problems are far from over. In fact, a new set of ordeals seems to await the migrant, most of them daily wagers, as they are now forced to queue up in front of police stations in the quest for travel permits, after spending weeks in queues for food and rations.  Despite the central directive, uncertainty reigns supreme over the facilitation of their travel back home.  The first thing that 31-year-old Anwar Hussain and his eight colleagues, all daily wage labourers…

The government may have finally opened up movement for stranded migrant workers after a gap of 40 days, but their problems are far from over. In fact, a new set of ordeals seems to await the migrant, most of them daily wagers, as they are now forced to queue up in front of police stations in the quest for travel permits, after spending weeks in queues for food and rations.  Despite the central directive, uncertainty reigns supreme over the facilitation of their travel back home.  The first thing that 31-year-old Anwar Hussain and his eight colleagues, all daily wage labourers…

India’s COVID-19 lockdown, one of the strictest in human history, was recently extended by the Prime Minister of India until the 3rd of May. Many stranded migrants waiting for public transport to take them back home or for production activities and markets to resume functioning were disappointed one more time, after the PM’s announcement on April 14th.  Along with poor migrants, other economically weaker sections in the city have been struggling for survival in the slums of cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Surat and Bangalore. This extension would seem like a terrible fait accompli and a final nail in the coffin…