Mumbai Buzz: BKC gets double-decker AC buses | Recruitment for health posts and more…

This week in Mumbai: Recruitment for health posts, reopening of Anand Road in Malad, plantation for Miyawaki forests, and more.

BEST to start Ac double-decker e-buses on the BKC route 

Commute may just get a little easier for citizens working at the business district of BKC. The double-decker AC e-buses are set to start ferrying passengers at the Bandra Kurla complex from next month. A total of 10 buses will bring some respite to the busy, corporate hub of BKC. The area sees a daily footfall of more than two and a half lakh citizens. Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) has been trying hard for the last five months to provide buses on this route but the process has been delayed from the manufacturer’s end. 

“Next month, we expect 18 AC double-decker e-buses to be delivered, of which eight are expected to join the fleet in the first week of September. The remaining 10 e-buses will be inducted by late September. These e-buses will be operated on the BKC route,” said a BEST official. The Kurla Bus depot, where the buses will be stationed, will also be the main channel from where the buses will operate towards the BKC route.

Source: The Hindustan Times

Mega recruitment drive for health posts

The public health department of Maharashtra kickstarted a mega recruiting drive by opening 10,949 positions for the medical staff. The process, which was initiated by the previous government, was discontinued after an exam paper leak.

After the deaths in Kalwa hospital, there has been criticism over the shortage of doctors, supporting staff and paramedical staff. The incident shed light on the pending staff recruitment in the government hospitals and so, it was taken as a priority by the government. 

“In this drive, we are recruiting doctors, nurses, technicians, paramedical staff and for 60 types of posts in the C and D categories. The whole process will be looked after by Tata Consultancy Service. They will conduct the exams and give us the final list of selected candidates, after which the state government will give them appointment letters,” said public health minister Tanaji Sawant.

Source: The Hindustan Times

Total water stock at 90% in lakes  

The month of August saw poor rainfall, including in the catchment areas of the lakes that provide water for Mumbai. After an earlier spell of very heavy rains, it has not rained consistently in the past few weeks.

Overflowing lakes in Mumbai due to heavy rainfall. Pic: BMC
At the end of August , water stock across all the lake was at 90%. To ensure water supply for the year, the stock needs to reach its full capacity. Pic: BMC

The recent data released by BMC states that the collective water stock in the seven lakes of Mumbai is 90.37 per cent, with Modak-Sagar at 99.90 percent of water stock, Upper Vaitarna at 77.95 percent, Middle Vaitarna at 96.89 percent, Bhatsa at 88.61 per cent, Vihar at 100 percent and Tulsi 100 percent.

These levels are lesser than previous year’s water stock at the same time. However, the city will get another month of rains and officials are hopeful that the lakes will reach their full capacity and ensure water supply for the city for the whole year.

Source: Mid day


Read More: How Mumbai gets its water: A discussion


BMC plants 10,264 saplings in Chembur

As part of a project to develop 14 Miyawaki urban forests in the city, the BMC planted 10,264 saplings at a Chembur Park. The Miyawaki plantation technique, is a technique to restore the indigenous ecosystem, by densely planting local varieties of trees within small patches. This planting drive was organised at Chembur’s Sharad Narayan Acharya Park.

“Earlier, Chembur’s Sharad Narayan Acharya Park was an uneven plot, which we levelled with mud and prepared the soil for planting saplings. Besides undertaking the plantation drive, we are planning to carve out a pathway within the forest as well as put some benches with an aim to give visitors a feel of being amid a natural forest,” said Jeetendra Pardeshi, superintendent of gardens and tree department.

These 14 Miyawaki forests will be ready before Diwali, a senior civic official said.

Source: The Indian Express

Road widened and opened near Malad station

After being shut for four months, Anand Road in Malad is ready to use. The road has been widened for better pedestrian and traffic movement. Connected with the west side of Malad railway station, the road serves as an important commute point for BEST buses and vehicles going to the station.

“Basically, a 6-metre-long lane has been converted into three lanes of 18 metres. The widening work will be a great relief to pedestrian and vehicular traffic. At present, the road is one-way for traffic. We have decided to make it into two lanes. For that, we have consulted traffic police,” said a senior ward official.

Anand road is extremely crowded with its proximity to artificial jewellery shops and fish market. To take action towards the bottleneck traffic, the demolition of the extension of Malad’s iconic MM Mithaiwala and restaurants like Delhi Sweets and Jalpan Snacks took place in April.

Source: The Free Press Journal

18 months more for JJ hospital’s new building

The new building of the JJ multispecialty Hospital has been under construction since 2020. The addition of the new building to the hospital will make it Mumbai’s largest hospital. The new medical education minister, Hasan Mushrif extended the deadline for its completion by 18 more months, after the last deadline of July was missed. Only 29% of the work has been completed till now. An official said that the pace of the work was slow during the pandemic but the work never stopped.

There are 1,200 beds in the hospital, and the bed count will be increased by 1,200 more beds after the construction of the new building. The total project cost is around  ₹778.65 crore. The new building also has a VVIP ward and super speciality departments such as cardiovascular, neurosurgery, paediatric, urology, gastroenterology, surgical oncology, and pulmonary diseases, pharmacology, haematology, rheumatology, medical oncology.

Source: The Hindustan Times

(Compiled by Stephin Thomas)

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