Abandoned milk booths have become a sour point not just with Matunga residents, but with people across the city
Abandoned milk booths have become a sour point not just with Matunga residents, but with people across the city. A report in this paper highlighted how these defunct booths had become a safe haven for rats, drunkards and drug addicts. Last week, the body corpse of a junkie was found at one of these booths near a well-known Irani cafe in the locality.
This problem has found resonance with residents across Mumbai. There are approximately 1,800 Aarey milk booths across the city, but, most of them are shut, as the dairy was running into losses.
Even after several letters from activists seeking demolition of the defunct booths, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is yet to take any concrete action. We think the BMC needs to act with promptness about residents' complaints. Even if they do not think demolition is the answer, they need to investigate the state of these defunct booths and come up with a solution.
The citizens' fears are not unfounded. We have seen defunct pieces of infrastructure like bus shelters, or even small alleys that are unused, overrun with rats. They also become a haven for anti-social elements. Even abandoned cars pose a hazard for locals because of the same reasons.
We have examples all across the city with reference to this, and it is impossible that the BMC is unaware of this. Work with the people and for the people to address their problems. The authorities must finish their survey quickly and then implement a well thought out action plan. With the civic authorities new push on clearing encroachments and ensuring that pavements are for walking, these defunct milk booths should also be done away with.
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