Authorities' apathy?

It seems like the civic bodies do not care for the common man walking down the streets of Mumbai. The rains return and yet again, the footpath leading to the railway bridge from Goregaon (E) subway is encroached upon by illegal hawkers and clogged by flooded, muddy trails.

People have to walk through the filth even after the water has ebbed away and dried up. The hawkers outside the subway compel people to jump over ditches filled with dirty water. This problem also extends to the other side of the subway in Goregaon (W). A group of manual labourers waiting to be hired further, crowd this area.

There was once a BMC truck that would stand guard over this vital piece of land from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. only to ensure that the pedestrians received adequate walking space. This practice seems to have been abandoned. Nowadays, a random check seems to be the order of the day. The hawkers make themselves scarce as soon as BMC officials arrive to confiscate their goods, but reappear as soon as they are gone! Is this why we pay our taxes? Don't we deserve better civic amenities?