Our basic infrastructure is poorly maintained

Dina Desai’s injured leg

A senior citizen from South Mumbai injured herself after her leg got stuck in a gutter grate while going to a pharmacy, this paper reported on Wednesday. The grate's spokes had given way as she stepped on it and her leg went inside. She was eventually pulled out by passers-by who heard her cries for help. She had several medical procedures done, and her healing journey has been challenging and fraught. Her usual schedule and work have also been significantly disrupted. This happened at Nana Chowk, South Mumbai. It was a horrific, numbing and extremely painful incident. She may recover from the physical pain but the mental scars will remain.

Our city infrastructure needs repairs and maintenance on a regular basis. This is a dangerous and very disappointing incident where a citizen has suffered so much, due to no fault of hers. She also ensured repairs through a follow up. One can imagine a bigger disaster if a baby had fallen in the space. It is unfortunate that every citizen has to walk with utmost caution, actually looking down at the ground, as paver blocks and tiles are uprooted, roads are uneven, gravel causes slips and spills and even covers may break like this one.

We are currently on a development spree, seeking to transform this into Shanghai or Singapore or whatever the politicians spout. There is shouting from the rooftops about how we are getting hugely connected and even more modernised and much more. All those claims then, sound hollow when our existing and extremely basic infra lacks maintenance or is worn out to an extent where it can be extremely dangerous and in certain circumstances deadly too. Do not wait for disasters to wake up and act. Plus, we have to move towards some kind or redressal and compensation mechanism for people affected.