Bhushan Gagrani at Idea Exchange: ‘Pollution in Mumbai can’t be a permanent problem. There has to be a solution despite the construction’

It starts post-monsoon, instantly aft the October vigor is over. Experts accidental it is simply a weather-related improvement and localised successful nature. During this time, the density of aerial is inversely related to the temperature. Once somesthesia goes down, density increases and aerial particles stay successful the air. This is simply a planetary phenomenon. Locally, particulate from backstage and nationalist works and vehicular substance worsen conditions. So however bash we power these?

You cannot halt vehicles. You tin cheque their PUCs (pollution nether power certificates), effort to person an businesslike postulation travel strategy and make nationalist transport. As acold arsenic operation is concerned, we tried to halt activities successful a fewer pockets, but contamination is not pocket-wise. Then determination is the interaction of geography successful the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. For instance, if determination is crushing successful Navi Mumbai, it volition impact Mumbai. If determination is thing here, its interaction volition beryllium felt successful Vasai. We present person 32 AQI (air prime index) monitoring stations of which 28 are functioning, tally by BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation), IIT Bombay and MPCB (Maharashtra Pollution Control Board) which springiness hourly updates. But again, the readings are done successful a 500-metre area. Right present we are devising policies,based connected those readings. We transportation retired section level interventions, similar watering roads, clearing debris, mist fogging and stopping trenches. For operation work, determination are regulations similar creating greenish barriers. But rules aren’t followed.

Pratip Acharya: Half of Mumbai is dug up. Do you deliberation contamination is simply a impermanent oregon imperishable problem?

No occupation is permanent, determination has to beryllium a solution. Once astir of the ongoing concretisation for nationalist works is done, contamination volition spell down connected its own. However, adjacent if the nationalist works are implicit successful 2 years, backstage redevelopment enactment volition continue. For the adjacent 20 years, I bash not spot a slowdown of backstage redevelopment work. That’s the aboriginal of Mumbai.

Sandeep Singh: Violations of the rulebook are frequent, truthful however tin BMC guarantee strict adherence of norms. Can stringent penalties help?

Whenever we springiness retired contracts, determination has to beryllium a proviso of a definite punishment for definite defaults. Some of the aged contracts don’t person strict punishment clauses. For example, we person imposed dense work per time for concretisation. Second, however bash you enforce a punishment and cod it? For that we person to activate our machinery, contented halt enactment notices. We stopped enactment successful Borivali and Byculla country for much than 3 weeks. The aerial prime improved there. Now Byculla has 3 wards. Redevelopment buildings are connected 200-300 sq m wards and don’t person abstraction for due barricading. We are earnestly reasoning astir not allowing specified improvement connected tiny plots. There is nary borderline astir buildings, nary parking.

Nayonika Bose: The upgradation of Mumbai has travel astatine a outgo arsenic its histrion screen has depleted significantly. Does BMC person immoderate afforestation plan?

Wherever we get space, we either usage it for plantations oregon playgrounds. We don’t get galore large spaces but we bash get capable for gardens. A large plot volition soon beryllium opened to the nationalist successful Andheri. Another situation is the benignant of trees to beryllium planted.

Shubhangi Khapre: Without an elected body, don’t you consciousness that you tin absorption 100 per cent connected medication without overmuch interference? Is this a blessing successful disguise?

Yes, you are not preoccupied with smaller issues. You are not exposed to 250 corporators 24X7. But everything has a flip broadside too. While connected a day-to-day basis, you get a breather and are capable to ore connected your priorities, astatine the aforesaid time, not getting due feedback is an issue. Whatever we are getting astatine our level is from the Municipal Commissioner, Additional Municipal Commissioner oregon the Deputy Municipal Commissioner, which is similar pre-cooked food. Everything seems okay. Real feedback is missing. We are moving connected a antiauthoritarian strategy of a three-tier authorities which has been “unused” implicit the past 3 years. While getting utilized to things is hard, getting “unused” is precise fast. So bringing that backmost volition instrumentality time.

On BMC elections | Two SLPs person been filed successful the Supreme Court, 1 is connected OBCs, the 2nd is astir delimitation. Until determination is clarity connected them, thing tin beryllium said. It depends connected the Supreme Court’s last verdict

Sandeep Singh: Isn’t that unfortunate?

I don’t spot it arsenic fortunate oregon unfortunate. I americium lone discussing my impressions connected having them oregon not having them. I ever inquire my officials that adjacent though they whitethorn not beryllium corporators, we indispensable beryllium receptive to their issues. There whitethorn beryllium nagging and cross-political matters but still, you are getting immoderate feedback from them.

Mohamed Thaver: Why does Mumbai person to conflict the aforesaid problems for years? What are the persistent issues?

One, our roads are obscurity adjacent to planetary standards. And nowadays, not adjacent to nationalist standards. If we are to code this issue, determination has to beryllium a semipermanent solution. Earlier, determination was a multiplicity of agencies similar MSRDC (Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation), MMRDA (Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority) and PWD (Public Works Department). But now, each roads wrong municipal boundaries person been handed implicit to the BMC, beryllium it the Eastern oregon Western Express highways oregon flyovers. So it is the administrative work of the BMC to support them successful bully condition. There is nary enactment but to concretise the roads and not make trenches again. If this is done successful the adjacent 3 years, we volition person relief. We person collected information of concretised roads successful the past 3 years. There are nary potholes oregon h2o logging. We are readying to screen 800 km successful the adjacent 2 years. Except Eastern and Western Express highways, we volition spot nine-metre wide roads.

The different contented is astir utilities underneath the road. Due to redevelopment, the aforesaid crippled is going to transportation astir 2.5 to 3 times much people. So it leads to trenching to summation the capableness of utilities and you cannot bash trenching connected a factual roadworthy arsenic the full slab has to beryllium changed. We are consulting IIT experts and ensuring statement of ducts. I americium talking to each inferior providers to summation their spot present arsenic aft concretisation, we are not going to springiness support for trenching for the adjacent 20 years. It is easier said than done.

Omkar Gokhale: There was a akin assurance fixed to the Bombay High Court but it has present been delayed. How volition you tackle it?

We person already started work. I cognize it is not completed. We did not get bully contractors successful the land metropolis but we are doing bully enactment successful the suburbs. It has present started successful the land city, which has its ain challenges similar continuous VIP postulation movement. So getting a model from postulation constabulary is precise difficult.

Pratip Acharya: The coastal roadworthy is present afloat operational. What are immoderate of the cardinal infrastructure projects that are going to alteration the city?

Normally, erstwhile we speech astir infrastructure, we lone speech astir disposable aboveground infrastructure, but a batch of infrastructure is not visible. For example, we are moving connected 7 STP plants (Sewage Treatment Plants). Work was started successful 2022 and 7 STP plants — of astir astir 3,000 MLD (mega litres per day) — volition beryllium completed by 2028. This volition amended h2o prime successful the oversea astir Mumbai. Our occupation is that Mumbai utilized to propulsion its full sewage into the sea, for astir 8 to 10 km. And we are fortunate to person got that gradient successful the sea, truthful it is not visible. But it is inactive going into the sea. The volumetric cannot beryllium compared with Delhi but astir we are unloading a measurement of the Powai water aft secondary attraction into the oversea everyday. We are reasoning of recycling wastewater, not needfully for drinking, but for different uses.

Besides these, projects similar the Gargai Dam and the desalination program are besides successful the pipeline. We are augmenting Mumbai’s h2o proviso web by augmenting its h2o proviso tunnels. The colonisation of Mumbai is increasing and we person to beryllium future-ready astatine a clip erstwhile it is witnessing respective redevelopment projects crossed the metropolis and suburbs. As for connectivity, enactment has started connected the coastal road, going each the mode up to Versova, Dahisar and Bhayandar. There’s the Goregaon-Mulund New Link Road. The East-West connectivity is precise mediocre but the Thane-Borivali agelong by MMRDA volition code that. Then determination is the 9-km Sanjay Gandhi National Park tunnel.

Nayonika Bose: How good is the BMC equipped financially to execute infrastructure projects? There was speech astir utilizing Fixed Deposits (FDs)?

While determination is nary sizeable augmentation of resources connected a real-time basis, what we are earning has not gone down either. It mightiness person gone up by 5 to 7 per cent but determination is nary important summation to resources. We person not hiked taxes successful the past 4 years. However, what has helped BMC successful augmenting resources is existent estate. Because of our precocious premiums and the redevelopment boom, we are inactive not feeling the pinch arsenic acold arsenic our plans are concerned. All the infrastructure projects person been decently planned and funded for this fiscal twelvemonth and the next.

Frankly, I don’t cognize wherefore we are talking truthful overmuch astir FDs due to the fact that the inflation complaint is five-and-a-half per cent and I americium getting seven-and-a-half per cent from the bank. So I americium earning conscionable 2 per cent. Instead, investing that wealth successful nationalist assets oregon productive assets makes much sense. The FD contented tin go superior oregon debatable lone if we are incapable to wage the salaries, pension, debts (which we bash not person anyway) oregon instrumentality the information deposits of contractors. As agelong arsenic we are not defaulting, there’s thing to interest about. We volition person to instrumentality attraction of the liquidity issue, possibly aft 2 fiscal years.

Sandeep Singh: Do you deliberation you volition person to revise immoderate taxes, possibly aft section assemblage polls?

We whitethorn person to revise immoderate rates due to the fact that for 4 years, we person not revised taxes connected spot and water. We person to put hugely successful h2o projects. Water cuts are not helping america prevention h2o arsenic they make problems successful the organisation system. If you proviso 10-15 per cent little water, restoring the strategy is simply a hydraulic engineering challenge. It doesn’t travel backmost to its own, the maestro reservoir doesn’t get to its optimum level, capable unit is not created successful the organisation system.

Alok Deshpande: BMC has been criticised for its operation cartels, which impact the prime of roads. Can this beryllium broken?

Cartelisation is mostly successful roadworthy works, not successful different projects. Over the past decade, the champion contractors from each crossed India are moving connected BMC projects, beryllium it SCC, L&T, APCO, Welspun oregon Shapoorji. Even erstwhile it comes to roads, monopoly exists successful the tiny ward-level roads. For coastal roadworthy projects, being undertaken by L&T and HCC, there’s nary cartelisation. There’s thing called large and tiny contractors, determination has to beryllium bully contractors.

Sadaf Modak: Do you deliberation the metropolis falls abbreviated successful presumption of infrastructure for pedestrians?

Mumbai is not a precise walker-friendly city. South Mumbai has a batch of footpaths and bully histrion screen but elsewhere you find them successful patches. With a dearth of land, a footpath gets the past priority. Having said that, we are trying to make tiny clusters for walking. We volition pedestrianise Kalaghoda, parts of Bandra and Andheri. The coastal road, erstwhile it is completed, volition person walkways. The caller Marine Drive (unnamed yet but we telephone it truthful for convenience) adjacent Worli volition beryllium a 7.5 km agelong of walking, jogging and cycling.

Pratip Acharya: The BMC is besides mooting a connection to acceptable up hoardings and billboards connected the coastal road. Does it not contradict situation norms?

Not astatine all. The connection to erect hoardings is towards the mainland and not successful the reclaimed portion of the sea. We person received Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearances. Also, portion giving america permission, the Supreme Court had ordered america not to transportation retired immoderate developmental enactment successful the eco-sensitive zone. Why would we jeopardise ourselves by violating the court’s orders?

Shubhangi Khapre: While BMC provides basal infrastructure, it besides has to enactment with the Slum Redevelopment Authority (SRA). Do you deliberation this complicates matters?

The slum contented successful Mumbai is truthful large and chronic that BMC single-handedly cannot woody with it. You necessitate a abstracted Act and a abstracted organization mechanism. People accidental the slum colonisation has remained arsenic it is but an NGO study shows it has reduced to 29 per cent. Some accidental portion slums person gone, vertical slums person taken their place. The statement is endless. SRA has not been a large occurrence but it’s not a implicit nonaccomplishment either. Now it is gaining momentum again, due to the fact that of changes successful rules and regulations. Post-RERA, the developer assemblage has go much compliant. There is simply a beardown governmental volition to implicit these projects arsenic soon arsenic possible. I don’t cognize erstwhile Mumbai volition beryllium slum-free but determination volition beryllium a important quality successful 5 years.

On ROAD NETWORKS | Our roads are obscurity adjacent to planetary standards. And nowadays, not adjacent to nationalist standards. We are readying to screen 800 km successful the adjacent 2 years. We volition spot 9-m wide roads

Shubhangi Khapre: The vertical maturation is expanding but it puts further load connected resources.

But they were already there. Now the saleable constituent is incentivising the SRA. Density of colonisation connected that peculiar onshore successful immoderate lawsuit is going up due to the fact that of mean redevelopment.

Shubhangi Khapre: When bash you deliberation the BMC elections volition happen?

Two Special Leave Petitions (SLPs) person been filed successful the Supreme Court, 1 is connected OBCs (Other Backward Classes), the 2nd is astir delimitation. Until determination is clarity connected them, thing tin beryllium said. It depends connected the Supreme Court’s last verdict.

Siddhant Konduskar: How is BMC moving to revive BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport)?

BEST is simply a specialised transport agency, truthful I don’t deliberation BMC should get into operational issues. Now, arsenic a genitor organisation, it is BMC’s motivation and statutory work to enactment BEST done its budget. We person fixed Rs 850 crore successful the existent fiscal year. Next year, that whitethorn spell up. BMC has fixed an further Rs 400 crore to acquisition e-vehicles and bedewed lease BEST buses. More than funds, BEST volition person to code its ain problems.

Sandeep Singh: What is the BMC’s biggest challenge?

BMC should not go an inward-looking organisation. It should enactment arsenic per planetary standards and effort to accommodate to planetary champion practices.