With a population of over five lakh, Dombivli (East) - Mini Pune of Mumbai - is bursting at its seams. Cliched, yes. But then how does one describe an area spread out from the Diva borders to the Thakurli end? There's virtually no room left for any further construction in Dombivli (East). So this time round no one can blame the civic body for not taking any initiative. Well, its hands are tied up due to lack of space.A town in its own right, Dombivli has slowly grown to be self-sufficient. An indisputable point is that the residents don't need to go to town to shop. The only dilemma they might face is where to buy from? If Kelkar Road stands for dresses and saris, Phadke Road has more jewellery shops than vegetable vendors lining the roads. And computer and coaching classes grow faster than the bhaji-poli kendras.STATION ROAD AND HAWKERS: Rickshaws and hawkers leave no room for people to walk. The long queues at the ticket counters that snake their way out to the foot of the bridge, onlyadd to the peak hour rush. Stepping out from the station, people have to weave their way out between rickshaws and other vehicles. "It is especially difficult for women. It's as if you have reached the Dadar bridge," says Mayor Mahapurkar. To tackle this problem, the civic body has spent around Rs 30 lakh on a new market, right across Madhuban Theatre. Accommodating around 200 hawkers, the space will be rented out daily on first-come-first-serve basis. "The only reason the market is not operative is because they haven't found a politician to inaugurate it!" informs Sanjay Gharat, Deputy Commissioner, Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation. Meanwhile, certain sections of Manpada Road, Phadke Road and Nehru Road have been declared as `No Hawkers Zone'. "Certain hawkers will be shifted to areas not having any market so that people don't come all the way to the station to buy vegetables. This will also help reduce the crowd near the station," informs Gharat.WATER SHORTAGE: Residents of a building atRajaji Path spent Rs 50,000 to take two extra lines of water but it has not made any difference. For a complex housing 70 tenants they have seven water connections. The problem is not limited to just one building but is faced by the whole area. "There are times when we receive only around seven buckets of water. If we wash clothes, we have to skip a bath," says a resident."High contour areas like Rajaji Path and near Ramachandra Talkies receive less water as the pressure here is low. And it also depends on the wall operator, who has to operate around 30 different walls at one given time," informs Gharat. If a wall operator forgets (even deliberately) forgets to open even one wall, water pressure lowers. So Gharat has proposed that supply to certain rural areas, which receive water for 24 hours, be reduced for a certain period and divert the water to the affected areas.POLLUTION: Passing through the MIDC area at any given point of time is impossible without covering your nose with a handkerchief.But then, what does one expect from an industrial zone, where most factories manufacture chemicals? Ask those living in the residential zone, the colleges and the schools around these factories. While three colleges are situated here, Abhinav Vidyalaya (a school) works by keeping its windows closed. "There have been instances of dropouts after having paid a donation of Rs 15,000. All on their doctors advise," says a resident. But people who really suffer are those who live there. Flouting all rules, the 350-odd factories release acidic fumes directly into the air. Operating mostly in the night, the air here after 10.00 pm is nauseating. Most residents have over the years complained of related respiratory problems.The acid content in the air is so heavy that copper vessels kept in kitchens become dark, while certain metallic parts of scooters degenerate in a few months. While the chemicals released in the gutter find their way to the Ulhas river in Dombivli (W). "There were once so many fish in the river,now only crabs survive," says corporator Waman Mhatre. At one time people from Bhivandi, beyond Ulhas river, made a living out of selling this fish. While the fish disappeared, even cows drinking the river water have been reported to produce milk which stank of chemicals.Says a corporator: "The hands of the factory owners are so far reaching that even a corporator can't initiate action." And how does the Pollution Board operate? "Everyone is corrupt. They inform the factory owners in advance, so the air is clear that day," says a resident. Even the labourers have no background, so when there's a problem there's no one around to solve it. "Once when things got out of hand, we had to call in a fire brigade and a technician from another factory," informs another resident. "Stop this, before it turns into another Bhopal."
