Mumbai’s open spaces may disappear soon

On January 13, 2015, Mumbai’s long struggle to rescue its shrinking green and open spaces hit a formidable wall. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation cleared the controversial adoption policy for open spaces despite a huge public outcry. A draconian policy, it puts out over 1068 spaces, including parks, playgrounds and gardens spanning over 1200 acres, roughly the size of 588 international football pitches, up for adoption. Some of these are sadly fated to become “clubs” under a special clause.

My neighbourhood park in Bandra, the only green islet around a 1-square kilometre urban jungle, might just get replaced with a club with expensive, exclusive memberships and restricted access. It could very easily become a citadel of a powerful politician, who could openly dare the BMC to take it away a few years hence after violating the very essence of “public” space. Then all you can do is watch helplessly the already abysmal per capita open-space in Mumbai, which is less than 1 square-metre, disappear. As of now it is less than half of Hong Kong, one-sixth of Singapore and a staggering 25 times less than New York’s.

The policy not only gives legal sanctity to the controversial nine existing member-only clubs built on public land over the past two decades, but issues fresh clearances to over 12 ‘adopters’, who have spent more than Rs3 crore to build such exclusive enclaves. 

There is no explanation to why the BMC, the richest corporation in the country, which has set aside Rs200-crore for maintaining open spaces — calculations show it comes to Rs36 lakh per plot — cannot maintain these little patches of green.

What is disheartening is the cavalier attitude of public representatives, who will be knocking on our doors for votes during the 2017 BMC elections exactly a year later. The Shiv Sena, which is putting up a fight to open up the Mahalaxmi race course as a public park, has been at the forefront of clearing this policy. The BJP sold a pup to the citizens by first agreeing to rework the policy, and then did a volte face to back the Sena. The opposition merely took to photo-ops a day later as a mark of protest.

The BMC gives feeble arguments to justify the policy. Without any defined objective, it favours private entities to qualify as adopters over the more desirable local community organisations. The selection committee itself has no citizen-representative or an expert to veto the administrative proposals. Issues like greening missions, sport, women’s safety, heritage, local culture and multi-use of spaces do not even find a mention. This does not behove a city with global aspirations.

Mumbaikars are coming together yet again to reclaim their space, and are contemplating taking the legal route. This is probably not the best way, but seems to be the only hope. While the BMC has won round-one of the battle, I pin my hope on these citizens to ensure that I do not lose my little green neighbourhood park to a member-exclusive club. I have grown attached to the small warm bench in the garden where my grandmother used to sit and have gossip sessions with other nanis from the neighbourhood. No club can offer these precious moments.

The author is a Research Fellow at Observer Research Foundation, Mumbai. The opinions are personal