Mumbai Musings

The Final Frontier

Finally, the cacophonic- campaign is over. All the major political parties—BJP, Shiv Sena, Congress, NCP and MNS— will be remembered for upping for the crescendo and lowering the standards of what used to be known as ' election speeches' and 'promises'. After the ugly split between both the alliances, accusations of money laundering, bad governance, cheating have been flying around and the voters have been waiting for someone to take up some real issues. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is said to have addressed a record number of 29 rallies in less than 10 days and others have followed suit. While Modi has been pumping up the volume, Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi’s rallies seem to have happened without a whimper. 

Police and election commission officials have been seizing unaccounted cash and liquor from cars in various pockets of the state and cases have been registered. There has been a show-cause notice against Vinod Tawde, an increasingly popular BJP leader. As if all this was not bad enough, a press photographer from Indian Express was roughed up in Kolhapur by the police.

By Wednesday the people of Maharashtra will have to exercise their right to vote to select and elect the best—or the least wrong— candidate for their area. The Aam Aadmi Party that had virtually disappeared has resurfaced through pamphlets distributed in the newspapers today. It urges people to step out and vote and exercise the option of NOTA if they do not like any of the candidates. 

The Official Snapshot

1. Total Electors

2. Types of Assembly Constituencies:

3. Total number of Candidates

4. Assembly Constituencies having more than 16 candidates:  83

5.  Assembly Constituencies having more than 32 candidates: 1

6. Total Number of Female candidates:  276

7. No. and Name of the Assembly Constituency with maximum No. of Candidates: 87 ( Nanded South - 39 Candidates)

8. No. & Name of the Assembly Constituency with minimum number of Candidates: 

• 216-Akole (ST) – 5 Candidates
• 264-Guhagar – 5 Candidates 

9.  Party-wise list of candidates:

10. Largest Assembly constituency Electorate wise: 205- Chinchwad (484080 electors)

11.  Smallest Assembly constituency Electorate wise: 180- Wadala (196859 electors)

12.  Number of General, Expenditure, Police & Awareness Observers deployed

13. No. of Polling Personnel deployed ( approx):  584617

14. No. of Polling Stations:  91376

15. Number of EVMs to be used in the elections:

• Control Units - 114255
• Ballot Units - 151032

The Only Constant 

With every passing day, speculation about who will come together and who will pull each other apart is only getting dense. As if what the politicians said, e.g. Sharad Pawar saying Shiv Sena is not alone and such like, was not enough, actor Nana Patekar seemed to suggest that MNS and Sena may come together. He was speaking at a promotional event for his just released film, Dr Prakash Amte, which is the character he plays. Even when the audience repeatedly asked him about his involvement in politics, he evaded the questions by saying cinema was his means of expression and he wouldn’t get into politics unless things fall apart completely. Hmmm. Hope that day never comes and he continues to make inspiring films like Dr Prakash Amte, bringing lives of selfless people into the mainstream. Are the politicians watching? 

Bird Watching 

Away from the election atmosphere, it's  not on anyone’s agenda at the moment but a small piece of good news awaits everyone travelling from Mumbai towards Konkan, Goa or Pune. En route, one crosses Karnala Bird Sanctuary, where people normally halt for their tea break. There is a good reason to make it a longer stop: Home to more than 140 species of birds, the sanctuary also has a fort. Now there will be a replica of the fort and sanctuary, complete with indications and signage for vantage points for spotting the birds. Until now, there were no guides or any other material to help nature enthusiasts, but now the authorities have put a nursery in place with 80-90 varieties of medicinal plants, and have started activities such as planting saplings and the like. For Mumbaikars, who live in a city that is gasping for breath and choking on polluted air, this is a welcome change as it is actually doable in a day trip. We don’t have more time than that for nature anyway!

Picture Abhi Baaki Hai...

Last week a small piece of news created a big flutter in the hearts of Bollywood film buffs. It was reported that Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge ( DDLJ as it is now known), will be pulled off from Maratha Mandir, this December after completion of a 1000 weeks run. It has been running non-stop since its release on October 20 1995. However, proprietor Manoj Desai refuted the reports and told Outlook, “We, as in Aditya Chopra and I, have decided to keep it going till it runs.” One may wonder if it still “runs” at the daily matinee show at 1130 but Mr Desai is very happy with the occupancy. The movie that made Shahrukh-Kajol a cult pair like that of Amitabh-Rekha or Raj Kapoor-Nargis, has 40 to 50% occupancy on regular basis and it increases over the weekend. That is better than many films, even the just-released ones. Whatever happens to SRK’s upcoming Happy New Year, DDLJ goes on and on with happy no-ending. 

Dengue Danger

September recorded some of the hottest days in the past decade in Mumbai, setting the stage for Mumbai’s infamous October heat. And the bad fluctuating weather has had its impact. The city has already recorded five dengue deaths this year. The Mumbai Mirror reports, “According to a physician at a prominent South Mumbai hospital, 400 patients are being treated for dengue in south Mumbai's major medical institutions in the past one month. Meanwhile, the head of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's epidemiology cell, Dr. Mangala Gomare, said 487 patients suffering from the disease were receiving treatment at BMC and government hospitals in Mumbai.” Doctors are warning of several infections, conjunctivitis, malaria and dengue. Moreover, medical experts say that patients are requiring longer hospitalisation and stronger medicines to treat dengue, which also claimed noted film-maker Yash Chopra’s life in 2012. Although the civic body has undertaken several programmes to create awareness and prevent mosquito breeding, ongoing (never-ending) construction sites, off season showers and garbage has aided mosquito breeding.

Compassion of Convicts

Even as Kashmir continues to deal with after- effects of the flood, help is trickling in for the homeless. There are many reports debating whether the army and government help has been adequate or not. However, from this part of the world, generosity has been shown from a rather unexpected quarter. The Yerawada jail inmates donated Rs 2 lakh, that they collectively earned by working in the jail, to the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund. The inmates, including film actor Sanjay Dutt, get anything from Rs 40 to Rs 55 per day for various skilled and unskilled jobs. We are not sure how much has been collected and sent from Mumbai but in the atmosphere of BJP-led election campaign, with Whatsapp messages praising the army and criticising Kashmiris, there isn’t much discussion in the public domain. Amidst this the inmates have surely shown by example.