‘It Takes 200 Days To Destroy A City’

In 2007, London-based financial expert Percy Mistry chaired a high-power expert committee appointed by the finance ministry on making Mumbai an international financial centre. Excerpts from a candid chat with Outlook:

On who or what is killing Mumbai: Extremism in politics and the violence with which political parties are perpetrating this fascism is disconcerting. I think we should stop calling the people who claim to lead this city politicians, they’re merely political thugs. They are not just being pro-Maharashtrian, but being anti-Indian. This is a disease that is not only affecting Mumbai but other major cities of the country as well, and it poses a serious threat to the urbanisation and development of sovereign India. The Centre is far too weak to take a strong stand against this. Unless this is checked, it will lead to a complete disintegration of our country.

On the attitude of Mumbai’s citizenry: People take all this abuse lying down and don’t stand up for what they know is right for the city. People, especially in the business community who have so much invested here, and who have the power to get together, should take a stand and make a referendum. Sadly, they don’t make much noise. Where are all the people who raised a storm after the 26/11 attacks; why aren’t they speaking up now? And why is it that people who do speak out are targeted and why do we accept that? This attitude will definitely lead to the obliteration of Mumbai, it will lead to death of finance, industry, retail, healthcare, everything. These people who are creating trouble don’t fully comprehend the dangers of what they are doing. You have to remember it takes 200 years to build a city and just 200 days to destroy it.

On the issue of migrant labour: The idea of treating someone who has come from another part of the country to this city to find a livelihood as a migrant is utterly absurd. When we wrote the report on turning Mumbai into a credible international financial centre, we already sensed that the damage to the city had been done. After all, no one wants to invest fresh money into a city where the risks are just too great. And the costs are too great. In terms of the political stance, exorbitant real estate costs and the lack of infrastructure, it was only a matter of time before investments started moving to other areas like the NCR. Mumbai is just a cash cow that is being bled dry to take care of a sick state.