Governance

Promises made. Promises kept?

February 18, 2021 Avinay Umesh-Sanyogita

Why is the work of advocacy groups not taken seriously by elected representatives here in India? Who should then hold the elected representatives to account?

Here’s where your money goes. An explainer on BMC’s budget

January 29, 2021 Apekshita Varshney

Who prepares the budget? Where does the money get spent? Who spends it? Some important questions get answered here.

The new ‘mask trappers’ of Mumbai

January 28, 2021 Ronald Yesudhas

The key missing element in the Mask Penalty is that it believes in punitive action rather than education and collaboration.

Accountability: how to raise complaints with the BMC

January 23, 2021 Apekshita Varshney

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is good at taking citizen complaints. How good is it at redressing these things?

How powerful are Mumbaikars? Turns out, not that much

December 24, 2020 Apekshita Varshney

There is no decentralised urban governance in India, but a new index conceived by a city-based NGO, can help unpack why.

To Mumbai, Lessons from Los Angeles

December 15, 2020 Apekshita Varshney

Mumbai has been selected as a “C40 city”—a consortium of the world’s leading cities taking bold action against climate change. But, what does it lack?

Care about Mumbai? Here’s what you can do to make it better

December 3, 2020 Apekshita Varshney

RTI and social audits is the way to bring transparency and accountability. Veteran activist, Bhaskar Prabhu laments that few people care about accountability.

Mumbai has an option to better its urban governance. It chooses not to.

August 9, 2020 Apekshita Varshney

The idea of Area Sabhas can revolutionise urban governance in a crowded city like Mumbai. Why is it not implemented?

Want safer roads? Become better drivers.

July 31, 2020 Siddharth

In a country where you can literally buy a driving licence, why are we surprised when lakhs of people die in road accidents? The system is flawed and we are complicit.

Fighting COVID-19 in Dharavi with just a face mask, Mumbai police gets a raw deal

June 1, 2020 Santoshee Gulabkali Mishra

Over 2000 cops in Mumbai have tested positive and 20 have succumbed to the disease. This could have been minimised had the 50000 strong force been better trained and equipped.

Why Shramik trains and other promises have brought little cheer to Mumbai’s migrant workers

May 5, 2020 Hepzi Anthony

Mumbai has an estimated 3 million migrant workers. Even if the railways ferry about 2400 people in two trains per day, it will take a couple of months to transport them back home.

Low-cost housing crunch in Mumbai: Is the state to blame?

February 28, 2020 Hepzi Anthony

Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), the state’s nodal agency for public housing provision, is no longer able to build and sell houses at affordable rates. Many blame the tweaks in government policies that conveniently favour the corporate builders’ lobby.