18/01/2006.
What is the motto of our current government ?
'Sadak, Pani, Bijli' for all or 'Sirf Sadak ko Pani aur Bijli!'
Electricity, Roads & Water departments in New Panvel are under CIDCO's authority.
Strangely New Panvel & most of Navi Mumbai are reeling under load shedding for about 2.5 hours daily as this is winter. The hours would increase during summer season.
Ironically day before yesterday, in New Panvel, the street lights were ON, at about 11:00 am! and today on Sion-Panvel highway, the street lights were ON near Kalamboli & Kamothe node at about 11:15 am!
Some areas in New Panvel (eg Sukhapur) are facing water problems but the authorities have this precious commodity in abundance to water the 'cement dividers!'
The kind of signals such examples give is in no way indicating CIDCO is doing anything at all to curtail the acute electricity shortage.
Most of CBD 'The Nariman Point' of Navi Mumbai is facing load shedding from 11:30 am to 02:00 pm. Small business owners who can not afford inverters will have to shut down shops if our esteemed CIDCO keeps up this good work.
While India's economy booms, CIDCO is giving us a preview of our doom, that too, for no apparent fault of ours.
Authorities complain that they want to hike the meter rates, i say double them but please give us electricity; don't push businesses in to non-functional oblivion.
The world moves towards paperless office concept & we are now reforming our office to computer less!
And shamelessly enough, they want to fine people who 'use' more electricity. At least they are not 'wasting' it.
I feel that Vidarbha farmers & Thane's malnourished children are not enough to open their eyes. They want to kill small time entrepreneurs and businessmen as well; nice innovative way to keep population under control, eh!
People, don't be surprised if you see a 26 year old, expressionless, eyeing the tubelight utters 'BIJLI,' just like that old woman in movie Swades does, after she gets electricity in her house.
Welcome to Navi Mumbai, The City OFF 21st century.
Jai Hind!! Jai Maharashtra!!
18 January 2007
Fun & Frolic in the 'biased' Air.
I was looking at a picture of an Australian group performing at the Gateway of India, Mumbai, as a part of Mumbai festival, in one of the dailies. The photo brought back sad memories of a show which was intended to happen there but never took off; rather it was not allowed to start. I’m talking about I Rock 2005.
If anything is truly synonymous with Mumbai for the past 20/22 years, it is the Independence Day Rock, without fail it happened every year, sometimes delayed, but sure to happen; a phenomenon closely relative with our lifeline, ‘Local Trains.’ Our Authorities should have incorporated it in the ‘Mumbai Festival.’
Sometime back (September 2005) after our hallowed month of Independence, every rock & roll fan in Mumbai and surrounding cities was gearing up for live event of his life, ‘20th year of Independence Rock at Gateway of India, Mumbai.’
“So what if they did not allow us to rock at Rangbhavan,” a friend said, “we will rock harder at the Gateway of India.” "Indeed," I thought.
But, to our horror, the Mumbai Police struck down the hammer, for ‘Archeological’ reasons. Truly, as weird as it sound, allegations to shutting down the show before it started was ‘sound damages the monuments!’ Ironically political speeches and sounds from ‘Phirang’ vocal cords strengthens it.; No disrespect to the phirangs.
Till this day, I have kept my tickets for that show. Those tickets are an epitome of prejudice; How authorities strike ruthlessly upon a group of people who do not fall under their definition of ‘vote bank,’ a theory proved in the Anti-Reservations issue. The motivations of our esteemed politicians have gradually shifted from ‘Principles of Gandhiji’ to ‘Gandhiji on their compounding principle.’ No doubt Gandhiji is still revered for different reasons I suppose.
I wrote this article with a broken heart hoping this might revive Rangbhavan, after all the only thing that we do own is ‘the spirit of Mumbai,’ right ?
If anything is truly synonymous with Mumbai for the past 20/22 years, it is the Independence Day Rock, without fail it happened every year, sometimes delayed, but sure to happen; a phenomenon closely relative with our lifeline, ‘Local Trains.’ Our Authorities should have incorporated it in the ‘Mumbai Festival.’
Sometime back (September 2005) after our hallowed month of Independence, every rock & roll fan in Mumbai and surrounding cities was gearing up for live event of his life, ‘20th year of Independence Rock at Gateway of India, Mumbai.’
“So what if they did not allow us to rock at Rangbhavan,” a friend said, “we will rock harder at the Gateway of India.” "Indeed," I thought.
But, to our horror, the Mumbai Police struck down the hammer, for ‘Archeological’ reasons. Truly, as weird as it sound, allegations to shutting down the show before it started was ‘sound damages the monuments!’ Ironically political speeches and sounds from ‘Phirang’ vocal cords strengthens it.; No disrespect to the phirangs.
Till this day, I have kept my tickets for that show. Those tickets are an epitome of prejudice; How authorities strike ruthlessly upon a group of people who do not fall under their definition of ‘vote bank,’ a theory proved in the Anti-Reservations issue. The motivations of our esteemed politicians have gradually shifted from ‘Principles of Gandhiji’ to ‘Gandhiji on their compounding principle.’ No doubt Gandhiji is still revered for different reasons I suppose.
I wrote this article with a broken heart hoping this might revive Rangbhavan, after all the only thing that we do own is ‘the spirit of Mumbai,’ right ?
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Indian Citizen Ranting by Varun Gawarikar is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 India License.