I have been waiting to express myself on this point since some time now. The wait was there because one, I wanted to gather my thoughts; two, I wanted all the hullabaloo around this issue to quieten to some extent and then splash my thoughts out here.
I am neither anti nor pro the clashing camps. I write as a Mumbaikar- an ordinary, train/ bus/ auto rickshaw commuter class person so I speak solely for myself and my life in Mumbai. Here's my take on "Who does Mumbai belong to?".
I would like to put forth a couple of things first.
The ongoing rate for owning a 1 BHK flat in Kandivli East where I live is anywhere around 36 lacs and onwards but not less.
A huge number of people from Mumbai or people planning to settle down in Mumbai are now buying houses in Mira Road/ Vasai/ Virar/ Kharghar (places outside Mumbai) since buying a house in Mumbai is out of bounds for most people. A lot of these guys, FYI, earn upwards of net Rs. 50,000 p.m. A decent percentage of them draw salaries ranging from 1-2 lacs p.m. To quote some people like my husband, even if one can afford a house that is worth a crore or over, does it make sense to take a huge loan and pay 2 and half times the principle amount to the bank?! You are never going to make money from it if you plan to live in Mumbai in that house cause all your life you will live there and not rent it out or sell it. With that kind of money you will pay the bank you will not be able to buy another house. So... you part with a big chunk of your money just to live in a supposedly central or happening place in Mumbai. Its fine for a rich businessman but not for others, especially a salaried person... it just doesn't make business sense!
I will not get into further numbers and thus calculations but my point here is that living in Mumbai is getting outrageously expensive and tiring (when you commute from one end of the city to another). To meet the crazy demand for houses and make big bucks, the developers and builders are not even sparing salt pans/ forests/ mangroves/ dried-up rivers etc. Nor do they want to cut down their huge profit margins (Its better not to guess what their profit margins are cause they are astounding).
In this chaos, Mumbai keeps receiving migrants from all over the country and neighbouring countries (As labour hands and terrorists). The migrants who come to work here come to Mumbai for a better life, to live and to become successful. As an ever growing metropolis Mumbai needs as many people as possible because we the office-goers are not going to erect buildings or make roads and flyovers or be able to do other small, odd jobs etc., we need people for these jobs who are definitely not going to be well educated or contribute much financially.
And despite all the problems we Mumbaikars face due to huge numbers migrating in I maintain that an Indian cannot and should not be stopped from living and working anywhere in the country.
Now, that we have all the basic points in place- about Mumbai, migrants, cost of living etc. I wonder, "How much burden can Mumbai can take?!"
I am not against people migrating to Mumbai but we Mumbaikars who belong to diverse castes/ religions/ backgrounds definitely do not want more people to add on to the already burgeoning and biologically multiplying populace. We do not want anyone due to whom we will lose our salt pans, our open spaces, our forest covers. We do not want the Land mafia to perpetuate, we do not want to give politicians ready-vote-banks only to get to power and not do what they are elected for, we do not want to pay our hard-earned money for stolen electricity/ water etc. We do not want slums to get bigger than they already are, we do not want slums to occupy our roads, we do not want to see people defecating by the roads and railway lines. There is a lot more we do not want people to do to our Mumbai. This is a city of Dreams and not a toilet-cum-garbage-can!
Why can't there be such a system in place such that the labour class is organised. Such that they are registered, can move around working in various cities where there is any kind of construction work and when there is no work or not much work they can return to their towns and villages where they can be employed in cottage industries or farming activities. If there is a fixed systematic plan in place, they will get the right wages, they will be recognised, they can be trained from time to time, plus they will have a better quality of life. That way they will not be a burden on the city infrastructure as well.
There is middle and upper-middle class influx too. I would just urge these people to work out the pros and cons before moving to a city like Mumbai where more people means more difficulty at every step, its not as beautiful as it looks from afar. It gets ugly, there is a fight for every breath you take, for every standing space even!
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY WE DO NOT WANT MUMBAI TO BECOME SO CRAZILY EXPENSIVE TO LIVE IN THAT THE RICH, RICHER AND THE RICHEST AND THE POOREST ALONE CAN LIVE IN MUMBAI!!!
My heart does go out to those those people who are not left with much choice but to migrate to Mumbai and other metros despite the pathetic living conditions they would have here.
To add on to the civic problems our politicians have failed to protect our land from terror attacks. So, can we still say, "Saare Jahan Se Achha Hindustan Hamara..."
I am not saying that politicians do nothing at all. Running the country is greatly more difficult than it seems. What I say here is that even after filling their coffers and ensuring the best future for their kith and kin why cannot they put a strong system in place?! Is it that difficult with the help of the best brainss in the world?! We all know that the world is in awe of the Indian diaspora and the rest of us back here definitely share similar genetic stuff... if they can help build economies, infrastructure and solid systems abroad can't we do the same here?!
In places where there are opportunities for everyone, no one and nothing is a burden. E.g. In a family where its only the woman of the house who is left to do all the work, is not fed properly and is treated badly by the other family members is bound to fall sick, run away to another man or even contemplate suicide because her parents cannot take her in, there is no place for her to return to and even if she does she may face harder times. So, she needs a caring, loving and supportive family. Apply this to people and you will know why they migrate to cities even if they are not willing to. Some are fortunate to create opportunitites for themselves in their land but some others just have to move on. Good and equal opportunities have to be created. And only opportunities for a good life in every place can ensure that the cities are not over-burdened.
Coming back to the city civic issues, the government has plans under SRA for the slum dwellers and I am sure the slums are not going to grow more anyway, they just can't under the given conditions. Reasons being; the cost of living, developers/ builders grabbing every possible area, land mafia with its eye on BMC land turning it into commercial space, it does not look like slums can expand any further. However, we must all continue striving to protect our forest cover by ensuring that the encroachments are under check. The BMC should be very proactive and ensure that the Land mafia does not prosper by grabbing our open lands and we too should be vigilant and report to the civic authorities.
And we as citizens of Mumbai should be watchdogs and see to it that enough space remains in the city for the rain water to move into and recede into the sea and is not gobbled up by developers and builders.
There is a lot that needs to be done... just talking will not help. A lot of us do things to help our city, lets do it more responsibly and proactively, let no one have to ask us, lets just do it, for our sake. BTW this applies to me as well.
Emotionally, I can very well understand why people fall in love with this city and make it their home. Its the freedom to live on your own terms, having the financial freedom, the freedom to love, the freedom to be yourself and have your own unique identity, to fly like a free bird in the open sky. And an ever-changing, interesting and fast paced lifestyle. But times are changing and fast...
I am born and brought up in Mumbai so I know, its now become a bugeoning, crazy megapolis where you put up a fight for everything... from admissions to jobs to commuting to even entry into clubs! But I am so in love with my birthplace, I have never known life apart or away from it. "Jeena yahan, marna yahan, iske siwa jaana kahaan?"
And I love all the people who I have made friends with who are not from here but have made Mumbai what it is alongwith me. However, I still urge my fellow Indians to create great opportunities all around and make our entire country a happy and prosperous place to live in. That way all of us can live in any part of the country and there will be no battle for any one or couple of places.
On a lighter note, a good number of our countrymen are abroad and many more on their way there, lets persuade even more people to go. That way, it will be our turn to rule other countries, like they ruled us but we'll use democracy and other politically correct stuff to do that! LOL... ;)
Now, to answer the question, "To whom does Mumbai belong?" It belongs to every Indian (Also to those from other countries who love Mumbai).
And in current times, to every person who can fight it out and stay put here.
MUMBAI BELONGS TO THE FITTEST!!! LOL...!
:)
