If only Mumbai cud.....

I love Mumbai. It is bursting to the brims. But still it is trying to put up a brave front. That is why we find even today trainloads of newcomers are pouring into this island city from all over. A new trend which has started now is that even foreigners are coming over here for on the job training, medical treatment and so on.

I am trying to put up the various banes of Mumbai as I see it today.

1. Spitting all around - I am not sure why I find so many people spitting all around. Every inch of Mumbai is having multi-layers of spitting on it. The other day my sandal snapped and I had to walk some distance bare-foot. I was not that worried of the pebbles as I was of the spittings on which I had to tread. The police had started some action but it was a knee-jerk effort. Things have come to a stop.

2. Defacing direction sign-boards - At Andheri station, nice sign-boards were put up showing the directions. At Germany/France we managed ourselves everything just by following the posters. And here within a few days hand-bills were pasted on the sign-boards. Can't the police take action against the organization who put up such ugly handbills? Can't the station-master get the handbills plucked out?

3. Hawkers within railway station premises: The number of sellers and the number of tables at Andheri staion seems to be on the rise. Two issues are involved. a) you are obstructing the already dwindling area leading to chances of stampede. b) There are chances of the public picking up fights with the hawkers. Innocents will suffer bodily if a scuffle breaks out. Why is the station master looking the other way?

4. BEST buses running without boards: I understand that a lot of routes have changed and that the glow-signs are being installed in the buses to reflect the number and the destination. But in the interim, passengers are suffering a lot. Empty buses zoom past you at the bus stops as you are not waving to stop them down because of absence of the route number. Come on BEST - you were never so unprofessional?

5. No buses at Railway stations in the mornings: BEST once again. Right at 7 am the traffic is not so bad. But you'll find serpentine lines at Andheri station (moving inside the station premises) as there are not enough buses. What is the issue Mr BEST? Get 100 buses lined up at night itself.

6. Piling of heavy vehicles at the Octroi check-posts: Every morning it is becoming a routine affair to get affected by the long lines of double-treble lines of heavy vehicles held up at the octroi posts on Vashi/Airoli bridges. If the department cannot cope up with the volumes, let atleast there be some discipline in the lining of the trucks. Let there be only two lines extending all the way to Panvel, if required.

I understand there are issues of drinking water, sewage, garbage also. All these are leading to all sorts of diseases. So there could be an occasion when people would die in their thousands. We are just sitting on that time bomb.

Thousands of commuters are braving these every day. Hats off to you - the common Mumbaikar. I am also one of you. I am just beating the traffic by getting out as early as possible. Let's see how long can I keep it up.