Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) has restructured and expanded the wards for the forthcoming civic polls and this has left many men in the lurch as their home rounds have been lost to reservations. In line with the government policy to reserve half of the seats to women in local self government bodies, 56 of the 111 wards have been kept aside as ladies wards. In Ghansoli, five out of six and in Kopar Khairane, 11 out of 17 will be reserved for women. NMMC – covering the city from Dighe to Belapur – has 89 wards as of now and the expansion has been done also due to increase in population, civic commissioner D T Waghmare says.
The draw for the restructuring was done in full public view at an event at the Vishnudas Bhave auditorium with school children pick lottery chits to ensure transparency. Several NCP big guns like Mayor Sagar Naik and corporators Sampat Shevale, Bharat Nakhate, Kishore Patkar, Raju Shinde, Keshav Nhatre, Amit Medkar and Balkrishna Patil lost their wards to reservations so did corporator couple Santosh and Anita Shetty. Many men have begun to grumble in private as the ‘hard work’ put by them, particularly by spending large funds for amenities in the last few weeks of their ‘rule’, will go waste. They will have to look for their wives and daughters to contest. Else, they will have to seek new grounds something which is not going to be an easy task, given the localised political pulls.
Success has many claimants while failure has none. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis may have finally okayed the plan for increased FSI of 2.5 for redevelopment of 20-year old buildings in the City of the 21st Century – which actually is a matter of shame. BJP was quick to take credit for the much awaited extra FSI. “The NCP may have been fighting for it, but who got the result?” asked a BJP leader. Adivashi has reported several times that then district Guardian Minister Ganesh Naik and his MLA son Sandeep Naik took up the issue several times with various CMs. In fact, NCP supremo even said he saw the FSI decree signed by former CM Prithviraj Chavan! Politics apart, the policy will benefit as many as 125,000 residents who have been living dangerously in 81 buildings declared unfit for human habitation within 20 years of their construction. The dilapidated JN type buildings may soon disappear giving way to skyscrapers. This will require massive infrastructure support in terms water, electricity, sewerage, education, health and open spaces. Will the urban planners cater to these? Watch this space as Adivashi continues to keep an eagle’s eye on the developments.
Here is yet another gift from the ruling BJP for the city – the new city planned to be developed in Navi Mumbai International Airport Notified Area (NAINA) will be part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 100 Smart Cities. A Smart City is designed to have much better infrastructure than the conventional urban developments. Apart from uninterrupted utility services, it is designed to deploy technology for governance and monitoring, open and recreational spaces. With designated areas for commercial, retail and hawkers, a Smart City is supposed to be free of encroachments which are sadly lacking in the present version of this so-called new city.
Talking of encroachments, Adivashi has mentioned about the crab culture mafia which systematically destroys mangroves and creates artificial ponds. CM Fadnavis recently took a hovercraft ride in the Vashi-Airoli stretch and expressed his concern over the wanton destruction. He said he will soon have meetings with coast guard and maritime police to work out a scheme to check this menace. He has also accepted MLA Sandeep’s plea to promote mangrove tourism and bird watch in the stretch.
The Sagar Vihar hovercraft base has presented a spick-and-span look as the CM took off from there on his coastal ride. Local people expect that the civic authorities will continue to maintain cleanliness in the area for the benefit of those seeking fresh air.
The city houses Asia’s largest wholesale market complex called APMC, but the area seems to have become a criminal hub. Nobody is supposed to stay in the complex after business hours. Yet one can find hundreds of people moving about or taking shelter in the market yards. Police have been expressing concern over drug-peddlers, fake currency racketeers and illegal Bangla migrants. The administration here technically falls under APMC.
In a dichotomy of sorts, a motorcycle rally aimed at creating awareness about voting had several bikers without helmets. Traffic policemen accompanying the rally apparently turned a blind eye to the violation and neglect of the basic safety requirement.
This is the 101st in a series on Navi Mumbai by veteran media professional B N Kumar, a long time resident of Mumbai’s twin city. He can be contacted on: samacharfoundation@gmail.com
B N Kumar
