There’s nothing out of the peculiar a few playground catering to youngsters indulging in video games, these out on a stroll or to somebody on a current well being kick, struggling to strike a Yoga pose. In September this yr, when native residents flocked the playground at Bandra’s Patwardhan Park to chase footballs and unwind with some Zumba, it turned the speak of the city.
Amid drummers belting out tunes, politicians from throughout get together traces together with BJP MLA Ashish Shelar, Congress MP Varsha Gaikwad in addition to former corporator Asif Zakaria, and Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi made a beeline to this seemingly easy gathering, which was additionally joined by Mumbai’s municipal commissioner, Bhushan Gagrani.
Not like a typical day within the backyard, residents and activists on September 22 gathered to have a good time the Brihanmumbai Municipal Company’s (BMC) current announcement to scrap the plans for an underground parking zone beneath the Patwardhan Park. The transfer got here after a yr through which residents fought a long-drawn battle, amid considerations of shedding a wealthy inexperienced and open area.
Nonetheless, this isn’t the only civic proposal which has succumbed to public outcry this yr. Previously six months alone, civic campaigns have coaxed the BMC to scrap tasks value over Rs 3,100 crore within the metropolis. The cancellation of plans has come even though the municipal home has been bereft of elected corporators for the previous 2.5 years.
Elevated highway over Khar subway
To decongest visitors, the BMC, early this yr, proposed to assemble an elevated east-west flyover over Khar Subway at a value of Rs 2,400 crore. Nonetheless, the mission designs immediately drew flak from residents. “Whereas we aren’t towards the mission, our foremost opposition stemmed from the flawed design of the proposal. The proposed design was slated to go by way of slim lanes comprising residential buildings together with hospitals and colleges, posing potential hazards. The flyover was additionally passing by way of steep curves, making a bottleneck for visitors,” stated Trivankumar Karnani, founding father of Mumbai North Central District Discussion board.
Quickly after, citizen boards like MNCDF, Santacruz East Residents’ Affiliation and Khar Residents’ Affiliation convened an array of conferences together with one on the Khar library. Because the discussions gathered steam, practically 1,000 residents had joined within the conferences over time to air their considerations over the design.
“After we had taken consent of different residents, we took up our considerations with the senior civic officers in addition to our MLA, Ashish Shelar,” Karnani added. Put up his assembly with the residents’ delegation, Bandra West MLA Shelar raised their considerations with the civic chief and at last on April 27, he took to social media to announce that the mission will probably be cancelled owing to the quite a few design flaws.
Fuelled by this success, residents at the moment are gunning for a brand new blueprint to hunt options for his or her visitors woes at Khar subway. Just lately, some locals convened a gathering with Bandra East MLA Zeeshan Siddique to debate a plan which might not hamper residents.
Reconstructing Malabar Hill reservoir
No sooner had the BMC mission to reconstruct the Malabar Hill Water Reservoir — situated beneath the floor of Hanging Backyard — come to mild in September 2023, an outrage sparked throughout the town.
Citing a structural audit which confirmed that the 137-year-old reservoir was weak, BMC was batting to reconstruct the construction and increase its capability. Pegged at a value of Rs 698 crore, the plan was anticipated to unfold over seven years in two phases, which concerned development of a brand new reservoir on the western flank earlier than rebuilding the prevailing construction.
The plan was slated to have an effect on 389 bushes of which 189 bushes have been set to be axed within the bio-diverse belt, additionally rendering the Hanging Gardens inaccessible for subsequent 7 years. Dismayed over the numerous inexperienced cowl loss, residents banded collectively by way of social media teams and shortly wrote to the civic authorities, expressing their considerations. Later, the BMC authorities convened a gathering with locals the place guardian minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha instructed officers to rethink the plan.
In what set off a sequence of occasions, the knowledgeable committee submitted a conflicting audit report over the well being of the reservoir, prompting the BMC to then rope in IIT Roorkee to find out the ultimate destiny of the construction. IIT Roorkee, following inspection — upheld that whereas there was no must demolish the present construction, another 52 MLD tank can be wanted to make sure no water disruption.
After a 10-month lengthy battle, guardian minister Lodha in June this yr introduced that the reservoir will keep, present process solely phase-wise restore.
Following this huge success, the residents at the moment are in talks with the BMC, conveying the chance that even another tank — which can value Rs 100 crore a minimum of — might not be required.
Underground parking at Patwardhan Park
In March 2023, the BMC floated a Rs 300-crore tender to develop under-ground parking heaps throughout three metropolis pockets. One amongst them was a plan to determine a robotic parking zone beneath the playground on the Raosaheb Patwardhan Park to ostensibly resolve parking hassles alongside the busy Linking Street.
Whereas the thought for a parking zone on the playground park had been first mooted in 2018, this was a contemporary Rs 74 crore tender to accommodate 228 autos, floated final yr.
Sprawling throughout 15,000 sq. metre, Patwardhan Park is among the many oldest open areas in Bandra and homes over 109 full-grown bushes. Amid considerations over the probably lack of inexperienced cowl and a key open lot within the space-starved metropolis, the plans drew loads of flak from residents.
Within the days that adopted, residents filed objections, recognized different parking spots in addition to thronged the civic pre-bid assembly to precise their disapproval.
Quickly after, environmental activists and designers additionally filed a PIL in Bombay Excessive Courtroom searching for a route to completely restrain BMC from finishing up work associated to excavation or elimination of mud for the development of the underground lot on the backyard. After long-drawn protests, the BMC lastly caved in and formally scrapped the parking zone tender on September 11, this yr.
Relocating bio-medical waste plant in Govandi
Not like different tasks the place the wheels of campaigning had set into movement even earlier than the mission might take off, Mumbai’s sole bio-waste therapy facility in Govandi had come up in 2009, by way of a course of which native residents say concerned no public session and environmental clearances.
Maintained by the BMC by way of a personal agency–SMS Envoclean Non-public Restricted, the bio medical plant is supplied with a chimney, with locals alleging that the smoke from the power is likely one of the main contributors behind air pollution woes within the space.
It was through the Covid outbreak in 2020 that native resident Faiyaz Alam Shaikh instructed Categorical — when the inflow of medical waste had elevated — that Deonar locals began noticing thick black smoke from the incinerator, which might decide on their autos. In October 2022, a plea was filed within the HC by Govandi New Sangam Welfare Society, searching for fast closure of the power.
After a protracted battle, the residents lastly heaved a sigh of reduction after the HC in September 2023 directed the BMC to relocate the plant to MIDC Patalganga inside two years. However with the directives yielding no consequence up to now, the residents not too long ago additionally moved the Nationwide Inexperienced Tribunal urging the inexperienced physique’s fast intervention in relocation of the plant away from Govandi. In accordance with the agency, the delay in shifting is owing to the pending allotment of a brand new lot by MIDC.
Work on Gokhale bridge fast-tracked
Whereas notorious for its misalignment with the Barfiwala flyover, the primary section opening of Andheri’s Gokhale bridge in February 2024 — inside 13 months of labor order issuance — additionally turned a case research on how civic involvement can help in oiling the tempo of infrastructural works.
Instantly after the BMC introduced its choice to close the Gokhale bridge in November 2022, residents — nervous concerning the visitors woes forward— set in motion. Quickly, a WhatsApp group named ‘Gokhale Bridge — ASAP’ was created which garnered over tons of of residents very quickly whereas boards like Lokhandwala Oshiwara Residents Affiliation (LOCA) floated on-line petitions.
After a primary public assembly known as by native MLA Ameet Satam in December 2022, locals began assembly high BMC officers to trace the bridge improvement frequently. Each Sunday, they’d additionally head to the work website to examine the progress and would additionally hold different residents abreast of the newest developments.
Dhaval Shah of LOCA stated, “Because the frustration grew after the fifth and sixth deadline delay, extra individuals joined within the marketing campaign to fast-track the work. We’ve got spent loads of time and vitality to make sure that the BMC was on their toes. Actually, for many of our offline conferences, individuals would volunteer with preparations for a corridor or chairs, at their very own value. This stress largely ensured that the work accomplished sooner than different tasks, regardless of the delays.”
Their vigilance has sustained even after the primary section opened and now, Andheri locals have skilled their eyes on making certain that the second section opens easily too.
Classes for the longer term
Whereas the town has a wealthy historical past of civic participation relationship again over a century, residents’ actions, specialists allude, have lowered significantly over the previous couple of a long time—barring maybe some exceptions just like the profitable “Save Aarey” motion, which introduced hundreds to the streets.
Zoru Bathena, activist who has been on the core of a number of citizen-led campaigns in recent times, stated that whereas the social media tradition might help in giving mom-entum to a marketing campaign, it doesn’t essentially translate on floor. “Not each motion will get loads of consideration. Whereas individuals have all the time been conscious, in current occasions, they’ve grow to be extra vocal, not solely due to WhatsApp tradition, but additionally as a result of the federal government proposals have gotten blatantly flawed,” stated Bathena.
For specialists like Milind Mhaske, CEO of Praja Basis, it’s important to look past the 73th and 74th amendments to decentralise and the native physique ought to use new mediums to solicit views of residents on a plan, even earlier than it’s floated. Mhaske added, “Moreover, the BMC may also have ward-level models the place they will hold a demo of a proposed infrastructure plan, the place residents can come and perceive the mission. They will additionally ask their doubts and take a look at the proposal from the conservation perspective, even earlier than the plan is concretised.”
Chatting with The Indian Categorical, Abhijit Bangar, further municipal commissioner (tasks) stated the truth that individuals are approaching the civic physique with their considerations–regardless of the absence of elected representatives–is a really constructive improvement. “In a contemporary metropolis, individuals’s participation may be very obligatory proper from the planning to the event stage. So at any time when individuals carry forth their opinions concerning a plan, BMC takes inventory of it, verifies it and in addition cancels it, if the considerations are legitimate.”
