Quietest Diwali in years in Maximum City
The Diwali last week was the quietest in past four years, the state pollution control board has said. The board measured noise levels during Diwali in 158 places across the state, of which 45 were in Mumbai, where they found that loudest noise was equivalent to that of a washing machine. This was the least level in the last four years. The board also observed that 50 per cent decrease was observed in use of fire crackers in Mumbai, while across Maharashtra it remained around 30 per cent. In terms of air pollution, too, Diwali was cleaner this year.
NGO focuses on fighting light pollution
With the comparatively quiet and less suffocating Diwali, Awaaz foundation, the NGO that had been fighting for reduced noise pollution in the city for several years, has now shifted its foucs to light pollution in the city. According to the statistics available with the NGO, the illumination levels along Mumbai’s iconic Marine Drive are bright enough to disturb motorists and are harmful for residents.
In a recent decision over complaintsfiled by local residents, the Mumbai collector had asked the Wilson Gymkhana on the Marine Drive to remove their floodlights that emit around 84,800 lux (one lumen per square metre). The issue had lingered for a long as there are no guidelines in this regard and hence the NGO has now demanded guidelines to curb the ‘light pollution’ in the country’s commercial capital.
Boost for city wetlands
People of Navi Mumbai were able to save the prestigious wetlands in the city last fortnight when the Bombay High Court scrapped plans for an 18-hole golf course and a residential colony with 17 towers on a large water body surrounded by mangroves, near NRI Seawoods Complex in Nerul, off Palm Beach Road in Navi Mumbai. While doing so, the high court bench struck down a government notification, removing two pockets of land from the no development zone and directed local bodies and state government to preserve the wetland.
Centre pledges more funds for rail infra upgrade
While the city’s infrastructure is growing by leaps and bounds, Mumbai’s lifeline, the suburban locals, is getting unsafe for women day by day. While inaugurating a new suburban rail corridor last week rail minister Piyush Goyal had said that Rs 65,000 crore are being spent this year for Mumbai’s rail infrastructure which would make commuting in Mumbai a pleasure.
However, according to crime figures, the number of crime against women on trains and in railway premises in Mumbai have gone up by almost two fold over past two years. Being able to get away easily from the crowded railway stations after committing crime is one of the prime reasons behind the increase, experts have said. Local trains, or the suburban railway network, is the essential mode of communication for scores in the city.