IF TREES ARE A MENACE TO BE RID OF, WHAT ABOUT POT-HOLES, ETC., ??
Generally, it is observed that the government machinery takes its own sweet time to implement a court order or a government notification. However, in a rare case, no sooner a division bench of the Bombay High Court passed the order to fell trees in Aarey Colony to pave the path for a Metro car shed, the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) showed amazing swiftness in implementing the order! MMRC was in such a haste to fell trees that it did not even wait to cut trees in daylight. Instead, the MMRC started cutting trees in the night!
Amazed at the swiftness of the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation, Mumbaikars are asking, if thousands of trees can be slaughtered in a single night by the government officials at Aarey, then the pothole-filled dilapidated roads of Mumbai, too, could also be repaired in a single night! Mumbaikars claim the government can surely do their multifarious tasks at night that cannot be done during the day due to the traffic menace in Mumbai. But, neither the BMC nor the government officials nor the local corporators ponder over the woes of Mumbaikars.
Frustrated by the pothole menace, Mumbaikars had filed PIL in High Court and the Court had ordered the BMC to fill all the Mumbai potholes on a war footing. But, alas, the lethargic BMC officials, as usual, did not take the Court order seriously. Besides, deaths due to falling trees has been a common occurrence. On Wednesday, October 9, 2019, two innocent youths died due to stormy winds and lighting at Thane. In addition, in the past many years, several Mumbaikars have lost their lives due to irresponsible trimming of trees by the BMC Garden Department. The court has been slamming BMC, but the BMC seems to be not so serious. The same is the position of the hawkers’ menace in Mumbai. The court has ordered the BMC to remove illegal hawkers from No Hawking zones but in vain.
The law and order situation is also deplorable. There is a rise in crime and women are not secure. Each day, cases of rape and molestation are increasing. The police administration that needs to be on its toes is found wanting. However, it is shameful that the same police that needs to protect the citizens were seen brutally assaulting environmentalists who had gathered peacefully to protest against the felling of trees at Aarey last Friday night!!
Mumbaikars are thus questioning that if the government was in such a hurry to cut trees at Aarey, then why is it not serious on the vital issues of Mumbaikars?? Why does it not act immediately and solve the problems of potholes, dilapidated roads, overflowing nullahs, poor trimming of trees, hawkers’ menace, etc? Mumbaikars demand, just as the High Court has ordered to cut Aarey trees for the development of Mumbai, similarly the High Court must hold the BMC accountable and provide Mumbaikars smooth and pothole-free roads, clean environment, etc. The High Court must also slam the police administration and ensure that Mumbai has better security, the ladies feel secured and the crime rate is low!
