Is Mumbai still a third world city!

Living in NYC for the past three years, after spending the previous 25 years in Mumbai, I have come to believe I know almost everything there is to being urbane. Mumbai runs through my veins and I feel deeply connected to the city even though I am so far away, but its times like these that invoke feelings which are all too overwhelming, and it becomes almost impossible to not shed a tear even while you sit at work and read the news about what is happening in Mumbai.

So we were faced with a natural calamity, but what ever happened to Disaster Management and Recovery?? This question has never been more pronounced than how much it is today in my head, especially after hearing the news that someone I knew, actually perished in the rains! Before today, I never even considered this a possibility in Mumbai. With all the talks of how the Sensex has seen record highs and the way India is on the right track to becoming a superpower, it is an event like this that actually presents itself as a reality check. Thousands of people, one of them being my father were stranded on the streets of Mumbai for 12 hours or more, battling the rains and trying to survive without food and water, and no one out there to help them, but each other. Where were all the officials, the policemen who are otherwise omnipresent to collect their bribe when they see you running a light? To me, it seems as though the average Mumbaikar has learnt to live on his own, without any expectations of the government going out of its way to help him in a situation like this, a government that runs because of his tax money, a government which is present only because he chose them to help him, but chooses to stay away and do nothing when he needs them the most.

Crores and crores of rupees are spent on roads and sewage systems, but year after year it’s the same story, roads covered with potholes only paralleled by the craters on the moon and sewage flowing out from the clogged gutters. Every monsoon Mumbai turns into the biggest toilet in India.....and no one cares. Where is all the tax money going??? I dont care if the politicians pocket what we pay but give us something in return, but someone who is plain greedy certainly does not deserve any kind of office in the state.

These past three days have been plain trauma for the Mumbaikar, all I have read about is how people have died and how everyone out there is battling it out, but not one article about any efforts made by the police or any other rescue officials to help these people. I mean, it just doesn’t make sense!!!!!!! How could there be no one, why didn’t the navy come in and have any kind of air rescue in areas that were worst inflicted?? Where are the politicians who are otherwise rallying around the city, why did these people not even make any statements or give us updates on rescue efforts (if any) that were underway to help these people??

These rains have truly shown us how third world we are, and how the average Indian is deluded by the farce of his country being on the way to becoming a superpower. Of all the places, I would have expected a more sophisticated disaster warning and management system in Mumbai, which is after all the hub for pretty much everything.

Sitting this far, I feel helpless, but I feel it is about time the people started realising how weak the city really is and how much needs to be done, if ever Mumbai is to truly become a world city. Rising Sensex points, GDP and trade alone does not symbolize development, true development lies in the heart of every citizen in the country and every citizen of Mumbai, who will do whatever it takes to make this city and the country the best. Sadly, we are all just too caught up to see where we are heading. So invloved with our own personal lives that we fail to see the big picture. Its true, the Mumbaikar has a spirit like no other, but why does it take events like this to bring it out, why not be this person everyday and truly make a difference?

I salute Mumbai for the city she is, but I will not hesitate to condemn the actions of the people who run the city. The city has become their playground, and as Mumbaikars, it is up to each and every person living in this city to ensure that this doesn’t happen. It is about time; Mumbai came out of the 20th century and truly entered the 21st century. And no, glitzy clubs and high budget glamour doesn’t cut it, its sophistication at the grass root level which will truly make a difference. I love you Mumbai, and I hope the souls of all those who lost their lives rest in peace. But we need to do something, raise a voice and make sure something like this NEVER happens again.