#dnaEdit: BJP overshadowed Shiv Sena with its own agenda in BMC budget

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s budget for 2016-17 disappoints. A year before the BMC elections, the BJP-Sena-controlled civic body chose to play it safe, letting go yet another opportunity to address the systemic problems of the city. The political power play was quite curious. Shiv Sena, the senior coalition partner in the BMC, was pushed into a second position, and the BJP, which is the dominant coalition partner in the state and central governments, had its way. The Sena demurred and supported a budget which had the BJP stamp. Sena should have called the shots but it did not. It has become quite obvious that the BJP is trying to shake off its subordinate role in state politics for the last two decades. It is not surprising then that it has formulated the budget proposals with an eye on the civic elections due in 2017. 

Some of the populist proposals cater to the biggest segment of the population, the slum-dwellers. At 75 lakh, they comprise 55 per cent of Mumbai’s total population — a huge vote-bank that has to be wooed if either or both the parties have to stake claims to power next year. However, the budget allocation for the urban poor under three heads — Rs27.37 crore for gaothan, koliwadas and adivasi pada, Rs100 crore for slum improvement programme and Rs677 crore for repair and management of chawls and buildings — comes late in the day. The BMC can only hope to offer temporary reprieve to a people whom the ruling parties cannot afford to antagonise, at least not at this juncture.

Few days ago the state government had once again floated tenders inviting builders for Dharavi Redevelopment Project under a public-private partnership scheme. Asia’s biggest slum is also one of the dirtiest. This sprawling mass of tenements with an estimated one million inhabitants is one of the most neglected parts of the city. The intention is to leverage the land value of Dharavi rather than help the sans culottes living there. The BMC’s apathy also reflects in the living conditions in other slums where public toilets, sewerage system, garbage disposal and drinking-water facilities are grossly inadequate compared to the density of population.

The education sector sees an allocation of Rs2394 crore — Rs107 crore less than last year — a sizeable part of which will be spent in buying 22,799 computer tablets and 14,791 eco-friendly desks for municipal school students. Again, a classic example of populism since civic schools would have actually benefited if proper toilets were built, teaching posts were filled up and emphasis was attached to imparting education and holding regular classes. Proposing a scheme to get teachers from private schools to spend two hours every week teaching government school students is wishful thinking.

Setting up mini-science theatres in primary and secondary schools to develop an interest in science can prove beneficial only if these theatres do not fall into disuse after the civic body polls. The gulf between proposals and their implementation has surfaced in the education sphere as well with most of last year’s pending proposals being carried forward this time. Here the Sena should have shown some imagination that could have reaped political dividends. Instead of pressing for a Balasaheb Thackeray memorial, it could have bargained with the BJP for a state-of-the-art educational institute for poor students.