Policy

Marcus is a trans man pursuing a master’s degree in sports management from IISM, Mumbai. As a member of the transgender community, Marcus welcomes the state government's decision to provide free higher education to transgender students in public universities in Maharashtra and in affiliated colleges. "This will be effective because a lot of trans people also come from the lower economic strata. Unfortunately, they have to leave their households early on because their parents don’t approve of their identity. They have to either manage their studies or drop out,” says Marcus. Policy's inclusivity objective On December 5th, at a meeting…

The elderly population in India is rapidly rising with those above 60 years of age set to constitute 15% of the population by 2036 (22.7 crore), according to the India Ageing Report-2023 released by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). From constituting about 10.5% (14.9 crore) of the population in 2022, the population of senior citizens is likely to increase to 20% in 2050 (34.7 crore), thus throwing up new challenges related to their safety, well-being and health. The report also stressed on the need to focus policies and programmes on the needs of older women since they were estimated…

With admission season in full swing, students and parents in the city are busy choosing courses and colleges. Amidst this anxiety and nervousness, another issue on the minds of students is the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP). A total of 57 institutes in Mumbai will roll out the NEP from this academic year (2023-2024). One of the major changes that NEP implementation requires is the duration of courses. Three-year undergraduate courses are now a four-year course. An additional year is for the students to attain an honours degree, with a research option in the final year. The policy…

After a steady reduction from 2017 to 2020, the city witnessed an increase in waste collection from 5500 Metric Tonnes per day (MTD) in 2020-21 to 6300 MTD in 2021-22, says a report released by Praja Foundation. The highest contributor is wet (food) waste which comprises 73% of the total garbage collected at the landfills. The report on the status of civic issues in Mumbai, highlighted challenges in solid waste management, sewerage and water bodies. Moreover, due to the deteriorating sanitisation facilities, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) failed the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) 5-Star Rating of 'Garbage Free Cities' in…

The St. Peter's Seaside Cemetery, Kadeshwari Marg, near Mount Mary’s Steps, was established more than a century ago, around 1906. It serves a sizeable population of Catholics, concentrated in Bandra. It is an active cemetery and large numbers of Catholics have their graves here. About 50 burials take place every year. On 2nd January 2023, the Joint Municipal Commissioner – Zone III, served a 7-day Notice on St. Peter’s Church, under Sec 299 of the MMC Act 1888, intimating the take-over of a section of our cemetery for road-widening of 9.15 meters, including about 10 graves and the compound wall.…

Land is scarce in Mumbai. The island city to the south, an island only in name, is surrounded by the sea on all but one side. Towards the north, it is bordered by the neighbouring city of Thane. With such space constraints, to accommodate a population of 12 million, there is only one-way housing can go, and that is up.  How much housing can be built is thus less determined by land than by the amount of floor space, multiplied when the number of floors in a building reaches greater heights. This is controlled by the Floor Space Index, or FSI,…

In late August, Deepak Khilare, 40, undertook a 12-hour journey of 600 km with his family of five, including his aged father and a 10-year-old son, to visit Mumbai's King Edward Memorial (KEM) hospital from his hometown Nanded. A daily wage labourer, Deepak had sustained an injury while working at a construction site a month ago. This caused trauma to his spine and impaired his leg functions. The family first admitted him to a private hospital, but little improvement in his condition and dwindling savings forced them to move him to KEM. The fact that Deepak's relative was admitted there…

The recent formation of a new Maharashtra government and the appointment of a new chief minister has quickly led to abrupt policy changes for Mumbaikars. On June 29th, ex-chief minister Uddhav Thackeray resigned from his post, and on the next day, Eknath Shinde was sworn in as the new CM of Maharashtra. The new government, a coalition of BJP and rebel Shiv Sena MLAs, is set to bring in policy changes, especially in the face of the forthcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections.  The result of a widely publicised and unpredictable political conflict was sudden changes in government decisions, particularly the controversial reversal of Uddhav…

This is the first of a two part series on why health insurance companies refuse to reimburse treatment cost of mental illness, despite laws and insurance regulator guidelines saying they must treat mental illness on par with any other physical illness. "I bought a health insurance policy from a well-known insurance agency in 2014,” says V Naresh, 73, (name changed on request). “In January 2020, my 39-year-old son, who was diagnosed with a psychiatric illness, was admitted to rehab for 25 days. In March 2020, I put in a claim of around Rs. 2.75 lakh for the treatment, but it…

Bengaluru generates 6000 tons of garbage per day from various entities. BBMP as the local government and the nodal agency in charge of solid waste management, has categorised waste generators into bulk and non-bulk categories. According to estimates, over 1500 tons of waste is generated by Bulk Generators (BGs). Classification of Bulk Generators Bulk Generators have been classified into three categories, as per BBMP’s circular JC(SWM)/PRF/e-17410/2021-22 dated 30th Mar 2022: ResidentialInstitutionalCommercialApartments, Multi dwelling units, gated communities housing greater than 100 Units.Academic institutions, government departments and undertakings, religious institutions, hospitals, hospitality industry, Corporates, etc.All commercial entities which generate on an average…