City: Mumbai

In a bustling neighbourhood of Andheri (West), a housing society's effort to recycle black water is a lesson in self-sufficiency. Evershine Cosmic Co-operative Housing Society, comprising 186 flats, has successfully handled sewage from its homes since 2016. The society has not only reduced its environmental impact but has also managed to use the treated water effectively. This eco-conscious approach has helped the housing society meet its diverse water needs. Not many housing societies in Mumbai operate their own sewage treatment plants (STP) mainly because this involves demanding work and overseeing every step of the process. Besides, with the Brihanmumbai Municipal…

Although Mumbai has sufficient groundwater, experts opine that it is depleting at a fast rate due to rapid urbanisation and massive construction projects. There's also a lack of clear groundwater regulations and systematic records of private borewells and dug wells.  This guide provides a comprehensive overview of the rules, processes, and penalties associated with digging a borewell and extracting groundwater in Mumbai. Getting permission for groundwater extraction What are the rules for digging a borewell and extracting groundwater in Mumbai? In Mumbai, borewell digging and groundwater management are regulated under the Maharashtra Groundwater (Development and Management) Act 2009. According to…

Mumbai is a city of contrasts — while it thrives as India’s financial capital, it also struggles with environmental challenges and urban governance issues. A growing section of its population is also grappling with mental health issues caused by urban stress. The beginning of Project Mumbai Project Mumbai was started in 2018, as a citizen-driven, not-for-profit initiative dedicated to making Mumbai a better place to live, work, and play. With a firm belief in collective responsibility, we operate on a unique Public-Private-People model, ensuring that citizens, corporations, and local authorities work together to create meaningful change. What started as a…

In its 2025-26 budget, the BMC declared that it would start levying water charges on unmetered properties. To this end they have already started a survey of properties to fix a rate for these water charges. But what does this mean for the people of Mumbai? Who will be affected by this? Here’s what you should know about the decision that the BMC has taken. What is an unmetered property? Any premises which does not have a meter to measure the consumption of water is called an unmetered property. Most unmetered properties are in Mumbai City (excluding the suburban districts).…

Gharapuri Island in the Mumbai Harbour, colloquially known as Elephanta Island and home to the UNESCO-listed Elephanta Caves, is more than just a historical treasure. Every year, thousands of tourists visit its rock-cut temples, admiring the intricate carvings and the island’s natural beauty. But with tourism comes an often-overlooked problem — waste management. Plastic wrappers, discarded bottles, and a poorly managed waste disposal system have long marred this culturally significant heritage site while threatening its ecological balance. For years, Elephanta Island has struggled with waste management issues, worsened by its remote location and heavy tourist influx. With no proper disposal…

If you ask those who grew up in Mumbai in the 80s what they associate with Vihar Lake, most likely they will say the Humpty Dumpty statue and the annual school picnic on the lake’s banks. Vihar and six other artificial lakes, built over the past two centuries, still meet the majority of Mumbai’s water demand.According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which undertakes the humongous task of water provision to the city, its water supply system is the largest in Asia. BMC distributes around 4,000 million litres of water per day (MLD) to over three million Mumbaikars. Yet, many…

“It is something you will remember throughout your life,” says Archana Patney about the experience of making friends while riding the bus to school. She opted for the school bus for her older child, but not for her younger one. She is among the many parents in Mumbai who have to make this important decision come June every year. The Maharashtra Transport Department is set to introduce new regulations for school buses in the upcoming academic year, with a committee led by retired transport officer Jitendra Patil tasked with drafting these measures. This decision follows a series of crimes against…

On August 1, 2024, the Sion overbridge was closed for a two-year reconstruction project, disrupting traffic and daily commutes. The plan is to rebuild the century-old bridge — originally constructed across the railway tracks in 1912 — through a collaboration between the Central Railway and the BMC. However, to the dismay of citizens, the bridge has yet to be demolished. What are the reasons for this delay? Inconvenience to commuters The bridge connecting Sion East to Sion West serves as a vital link between Lal Bahadur Shastri (LBS) Marg, Dharavi, the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), and the Eastern Express Highway.…

In Part 1 of this series, we discussed how BEST’s wet-leased buses — owned and operated by private contractors — are rapidly replacing its own fleet. In Part 2, we explore how this model is impacting the quality of bus services.Last December, nine people were killed and another 37 injured in an accident involving a wet-leased electric bus in Kurla. According to the police, the driver had not been adequately trained before being moved to an automatic electric bus from manual, geared buses. Under the wet-leasing model, introduced to cut BEST’s costs, a contractor owns and operates the bus, and…

The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST), considered Mumbai’s second-biggest public transport lifeline, is far from its glory days. The bus accident in Kurla last December that killed nine passengers has brought sharp scrutiny on its operations. The company is also battling losses and recurrent workers’ strikes, the latest one being a flash strike by drivers last week at Wadala depot. According to activists and the BEST Workers’ Union, the core problem is the wet-leasing model introduced in 2018, under which contractors own and operate buses on behalf of BEST. Since then, BEST has steeply reduced its own fleet,…