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Journalism of Courage
SHORT-TERM PLANS
A BAN ON PLASTIC BAGS BELOW 50 MICRON THICK: This was one of the loudest and earliest promises. So, its poor execution is symptomatic of the slow pace of change. On May 24, after a marathon meeting with over 20 agencies, Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh read out a note on the recommendations of the Chitale Committee to be acted upon by June 5, at the latest.
8216;8216;Strict implementation8217;8217; of the ban would be effected through special drives, he said. With lakhs collected in fines and tonnes of plastic bags seized, the ban is nowhere near being effective.
Also proposed and already stumbling: severe penalties for those throwing garbage into rivers, a media campaign against disposing of nirmalya in rivers, creeks, and lakes.
DISASTER MANAGEMENT PLAN: Not only did the civic budget for 2006-7 devote Rs 111.34 crore for upgrading the fire brigade8217;s services, but the state8217;s pre-monsoon measures covered significant ground by mandating Standard Operating Procedures for every government agency. Ready to tackle emergencies now are weather updates every six hours on heavy rainfall days, civic alerts through SMS, radio and television channels, BEST buses and police vehicles for evacuation operations and control rooms for all utility providers.
CONTROL ROOM: The June inauguration of the Emergency Operations Centre in the basement of the civic headquarters was a clear sign of who8217;s in charge when disaster strikes. Earning its stripes on Terrible Tuesday were the range of communication systems including wireless systems, flatscreen TVs tuned in to news channels, computers networked with control rooms in ward offices, a video-conferencing system and uninterrupted power supply.
Also complete: Decentralised electronic rain guages to read local rainfall, three decentralised search and rescue teams equipped with firefighting and earthmoving machinery, plus inflatable boats, kayaks, floats and wetsuits within easy reach.
OPERATION MITHI: In a 90-day effort, the civic body and the MMRDA demolished shanties from alongside the Mithi river, widened it and desludged it. The same was to have been the case with the Poisar, Dahisar and Mahul river systems. But while desilting of other rivers was conducted, the urban renewal plans for these ecosystems are untouched.
CHRONIC FLOOD ZONES: Forty high-risk areas were identified, pumps stationed, 24/7 squads deployed to keep an eye on waterlogging here. Despite that, areas like Nana Chowk at Grant Road, Hindmata at Dadar, King8217;s Circle, Milan Subway, Khar Subway and Andheri Subway were inundated at least twice this monsoon.
LONG-TERM PROMISES
SLUM-FREE MUMBAI: A promise that the Deshmukh government has made repeatedly. Progress is none: Not only is there no progress on the repealing of the Urban Land Ceiling Act or on affordable housing, even the global tenders for the state8217;s showpiece Dharavi Redevelopment Project have not been announced.
8226; An island city dreaming to be a global leader can8217;t survive on drains built a century ago. But, while sluice gates, flood gates and detailed plans for pumping stations are all drawn into the Brihanmumbai Storm Water Drains BRIMSTOWAD project, there8217;s nothing on the ground yet8212;the teeming suburbs don8217;t have a single gated outfall, the pumping stations8217; plan ran into opposition from civic engineers and the implementation of BRIMSTOWAD is awaiting funds from the Centre under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.
CONTOUR MAPPING: This is 8216;8216;vital for the management of watersheds and for storm water handling8217;8217;, according to the Chitale report. For crowded areas, a scale of 1:1000 1 cm on the map representing 10 m on the ground was recommended and accepted, to understand surface depressions and study surface runoff. No progress has been made.
RIVER DEVELOPMENT: A river development authority under the MMRDA, to propose guidelines for reservoirs and catchment areas of the Mithi, Dahisar, Poisar, Ulhas and Mahul rivers. No progress.
WARNING SYSTEM: Early weather warning systems for the India Meteorological Department are still at least one monsoon away. Worse, a site for the Doppler radars is still to be located.
