The real problem of Mumbai

Yes.I know..half the guys who will read this note are all gung ho about the new Bandra Worli Sea Link in Mumbai.But I beg to differ guys..

I absolutely agree that the sea link is indeed an engineering marvel for the city. but how useful it is for our city? Let’s find out...

Cut to 1994..First time Shiv Sena and BJP alliance came to the power in Maharashtra.They started this frenzy of flyovers all over Mumbai.Result?The travel time between Dahisar to Bandra was cut to mere 20 minutes which was earlier at least (..and even now) one and half hours.

So there were these bright chaps like you and me…. earning decent (?? ) salary...decided to move up within the social status ladder and purchased cars. And not only we were smart but every Jayesh,Hitesh and Ramesh (Names are for representational purpose only) who could afford to own a car purchased a car.Then what?Hmm we started taking cars to office..and by default all our offices were in South Mumbai....So because it was easier to commute,we left train travel and switched to cars and now as because the vehicles on road continued to increase in numbers,state government started adding flyovers...the vicious circle..

There is another big sin committed by Sena-BJP govt then ..the announcement of free homes to people living in illegal slums.That made a huge impact on Mumbai as people from underdeveloped areas in country started coming more and more to this tinsel town..result..more illegal slums..and Mumbai became more and more bad place to live....

Now hold on..do not think I am a supporter of Congress or NCP as I have bashed Shiv Sena and BJP in above paragraphs...Congress and NCP further did the "punya karma " (good work) of continuing legacy of Sena-BJP govt in ensuring that Mumbai further deteriorates....they made illegal slums legal..first up to 1995 and now up to 2000..who knows...tomorrow they will issue a blanket approval for the slums "TO BE CONSTRUCTED" by 2015!!!.

Now coming back to our first point..Bandra Worli sea link...was it really necessary to construct a road bridge over the sea so that the rich fellows from Bandra and Juhu should reach office at Nariman Point in time?At the cost of INR 1600 Crores!!...A simple metro link from Bandra to Nariman Point would have cost the same as there was no land acquisition involved in the project...so rather than giving relief to the rich. they could have made life simpler of thousands of common men in this city with the rail/metro link.Then some of the normal Western Railway trains which now terminate at Bandra/Andheri could have been extended up to Virar so the poor people like me who stay beyond city limits could have also got more services for our sector....

Also if we see the 1994 period I was talking about above, it was much easier for then Maharashtra Government to build the additional metro/railway corridors than the flyovers. But we missed the chance and entered into a dangerous phase where every inch added in the road infrastructure promptly gets occupied by at least 10 new cars!

Hence there is a need for visionary city planners who will understand the real problem of this city and do the good work of strengthening the public transport in Mumbai than adding such huge financial white elephants like sea road links....

That's why I said. the problem is ..we do not know the real problem of Mumbai....