With the next series of G20 meetings scheduled to take place in Mumbai this week, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has started fixing roads and open spaces. The G20 Trade and Investment Working Group (TIWG) meeting will take place on March 28-30. More than 100 delegates are expected to visit the city from G20 member and guest countries.
The first day’s session will start with a seminar at Taj Lands End in Bandra, the sources said. It will be followed by a guided tour of the Bharat Diamond Exchange at the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) for delegates. Accommodation for delegates has been arranged in various five-star hotels, added people familiar with the matter.
Civic officials said all major and minor roads including main roads and flyovers passing through Bandra, BKC and Andheri are being beautified. Highways connecting the airport and suburbs with prime locations like Worli, Colaba and Nariman Point are also on the list. In addition to cleaning and sweeping the roads, the campaign includes paving uneven parts and areas in poor condition, coloring sidewalks, painting traffic signals, and lighting bridges and traffic islands.
In December, when the first session of the G20 was held in Mumbai, the BMC started a similar campaign in the city. “The ward officers have been ordered to sweep and clean the roads 24 hours a day to make sure there is no rubbish or dust,” an official said. A district official said the beautification work began late Friday in view of less traffic over the weekend. “There were lights and barricades that were put up during the previous session. We are just lighting them up and creating murals on the walls next to the sidewalks to make them visually appealing,” he added.
Meanwhile, the BMC move drew criticism from some public representatives. Asif Zakaria, former Bandra Congress corporat, said: “During the G20 summit, we saw workers and contractors working around the clock. Every time we demand support for basic services like picking up garbage or improving the water supply, district officials say there are insufficient funds and manpower. The BMC must not forget that its main objective is to serve the people”
“The BMC acts when there is a VIP visit. The people of Mumbaikar are treated as second class citizens. This is unfair,” said Godfrey Pimenta, a trustee of the NGO Watchdog Foundation.
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