The Times of India 12.08.2010
Painting the area green and clean
There is a thick green line separating the rest of the city from South Mumbai or “proper Mumbai” as some old-timers still prefer to call it. The line-made of parks, maidans and superior civic amenities-is wooded, salubrious, verdant, and ensures that when you cross over into the south, whether in a car, on foot or in a train, you know that “proper Mumbai” has arrived.
Many areas in this verdurous south-like Cuffe Parade, Fort, Nariman Point, Navy Nagar, Colaba, Marine Drive, Fort and Flora Fountain-fall under the BMC’s privileged A-ward. The ward, no doubt, benefits from being the address of the state’s political activity. But the credit for its greenness and unspoiled look is shared in no small measure by the large number of vigilant citizens’ groups and ALMs active in the area.
The biggest success story of citizen participation in the region is visible every day at the restored Oval Maidan. For years, the government considered plans to appropriate the ground in its construction drive, but the members of the Oval-Cooperage Residents’ Association (OCRA), which was formed in 1978, battled hard. “After 15 long years, we managed to get the authorities to listen to us,” said Nayana Kathpalia, a member of OCRA’s core committee.
The area’s residents now work under the banner of Organisation for Verdant Ambience and Land (OVAL) Trust. The residents say that such has been the effect of the group’s activism that, years ago, when minister Pramod Nawalkar tried temporarily housing Congress workers at the Oval, then chief ministerManohar Joshi told him to first “take permission of OCRA”.
Another instance of citizen awareness was displayed by the residents of First Pasta Lane in Colaba last year, when they got cleared constructions on a BMC land meant for a park.
The ALMs say that their success in making South Mumbai a highly liveable place is often a result of cooperation. A few years ago, four ALMs and residents groups together carried out a “second cleaning” of Churchgate after the municipal cleaners had done their bit. “A marked difference was seen. The best part was that the BMC supported us in this drive,” said Neera Punj of Nariman Point Churchgate Citizens’ Association.
