Mumbai: Caught in between different timezones

The nearly 800-year-old Koliwada today is a cramped locality with narrow bylanes and alleys which you can drive through only on a bike. Every election enlivens the hopes of the 65-acre Worli Koliwada which has 2,200 residents, legal heirs of the original 457 kolis, and 9,500 tenants more tenants waiting to fulfill their dreams.

Central to their aspirations is a well-planned koliwada which will have a place for all, the legal heirs, tenants, fishing community, and ample space for holding the festivities which are central to the community. Rangeet Koli, a resident of Worli Koliwada is a group of residents from Worli Koliwada whose daily walks are disrupted by the ongoing coastal road work. "Our roads have bikes parked on one end, there's hardly any space for us to walk. On the seaface, the promenade is half covered for coastal road work and sea view is blocked," complained Koli.

Devdas, a resident, and member of the Worli Koliwada Nakhwa Matsya Vyavsay Sahakari Society Limited, said, "The fishing community of Worli Koliwada wasn't taken into consideration by the authorities before starting the project. There is anger among the people of Koliwada, the rocks near the sea is the place where we get good fishes like prawns, lobsters, and now that area is going out of bound for us."

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Rahul Kolgaonkar, another resident of Koliwada said, "Recently the road was resurfaced but the bikes are parked haphazardly causing a major block for other vehicles to enter and exit the Koliwada." According to an earlier report, Kolis had even come up with a development plan for the Koliwada, which proposes high rises with 1,000-sq ft homes, or 3BHKs, for original residents and 400 sq ft flats for tenants. It pivots on Development Control Rule 33 (9), which will allow them to get an FSI of 4 where, currently, they get a lower FSI. The Kolis have also planned a sea-facing mall.

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Old itching to be new

What typifies old Mumbai are markets like Zaveri Bazaar, Kalbadevi, the Crawford Market and old dilapidated buildings waiting to be demolished or meeting their ill fate ahead of the monsoons. There is also a bustling street food market near the JJ flyover which is a food lover's paradise during Ramzan. For the business community having its shops, and offices in the lanes of Kalbadevi, Mangaldas market, Nagdevi crowded roads is an Achilles heel. H Shah, who operates from the Mangaldas Market said, "The roads that lead to the market are overcrowded, filled with parked vehicles causing a lot of problems."

South Mumbai also has the maximum number of dilapidated buildings. A rough estimate puts the figure of dilapidated buildings to close 14,000 and above. Arqam Shaikh of Arc Associates, who works on the redevelopment said that the government should come up with a proper plan to ensure shifting people from the dilapidated buildings.

In Old Mumbai one of the main attractions is street food served there. The succulent kebabs and tikkas of Haji Tikka Corner, at Bohri Mohalla, is one such watering hole. The owner Abdul Samad Qureshi said, "Last year during the fire the fire brigade took a lot of time to reach the spot because of this uncivilised way of parking vehicles on road," adds Qureshi.

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