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For any initiative to succeed, action is required. When US hotelier and founder of Hilton Hotels chain, Conrad Hilton uttered these words, he admitted he wasn’t saying anything profound. Only, he lived up to what he professed and made things happen. Something Mumbai’s blessed rulers and least of all, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) seldom do. But, as they say, when the people assigned to serve lose their way, those to be served show the light.

Mumbaikars, known for their never-say-die spirit showed the light yet again when two proposals were submitted by the Bandra Reclamation Area Volunteers’ Organisation (Bravo) to BMC - one for a solid waste management plant to convert garbage into electricity and another for a rainwater harvesting plant. About six tonnes of garbage is generated every day from Reclamation, Bandra Market, Rang Sharda auditorium, Lilavati Hospital and other adjoining areas. The proposal says that that the garbage can be converted into biogas and the electricity produced from it can be used to light up Reclamation.

The second proposal gave an idea of how to harvest rainwater running down the slope of the bridge linking Bandra east to west and use it for non-potable purposes. Brilliant ideas. Now, not only have residents come up with the ideas, but have also proposed to assist BMC and corporates in leading the proposals to fruition.

The Celebrate Bandra Festival Association is expected to partly fund the project along with the civic body and some corporates.
The point I am trying to accentuate, is that these ideas should actually have come from the powers-that-be. Imagine the people who are supposed to ensure a greener, better and more eco-friendly lives for us doing nothing to control the pollution that’s engulfing the megapolis with each passing day. How many times has it been brought to light that we need rainwater harvesting to end the perennial water scarcity? BMC is sitting pretty imposing a 15 % water cut and blaming the weather Gods for all the paucity.

Now that it has rained sufficiently, what steps has it taken to conserve the rainwater for future use?

Some people never to learn by example. Mumbai’s rulers are an apotheosis of this category. Though some housing societies in Thane have shown the way to conserve rainwater for purposes other than drinking, true to reputation, BMC’s counterpart, Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) never learnt the lesson. Don’t they say something about birds of the same feather?