Open-and-shut case for city kids

Our sutradhaars, Lady Flora and Sir Pheroze, discuss the lack of safe, open spaces for Mumbai’s children. ILLUSTRATION/UDAY MOHITE

Lady Flora realised something was amiss when Sir Pheroze suggested they meet by the steps of the Asiatic Society of Mumbai, for their midnight stroll, instead of one of the usual addas. She spotted him from a mile, given that the crowd had long gone. "All well, Pheroze?" she enquired, keen to know about his decision. "I am better now, thank you. Yesterday was an unexpectedly tiring day. The great grandniece was in town, and an accompanying family member suggested we have a picnic all the way in the Borivli National Park. I didn't realise how exhausting it would turn out to be. When I suggested Malabar Hill Forest Walkway, which is also amidst nature, the counter-argument was that they wanted to experience real "open spaces"," he sighed, using his fingers to gesture the inverted commas. He was upset that his legal background couldn't win this round.

"But it must have been worth the trek? To sit literally in the lap of nature. We are lucky to have a national park within the city's limits," she marvelled, hoping to make him feel a shade better. "Oh yes, but reaching there took us ages, as we trudged our way through Sunday traffic. Next, there were crowds who seemed to have had similar plans. Of course, once we entered, it was heaven, after we found a secluded open space. The kids had a blast. That's when it struck me how low-ranked we must be as a global city when it comes to accessible open spaces for children and adults."

Lady Flora chimed in, "Pheroze, isn't this a disturbing reality - that there are only a handful of these open spaces within the city and the suburbs? The city's population growth has burgeoned but sadly, development has continued to play catch-up, including offering more public parks and gardens." She then pulled out a roll of paper from her cloth tote, much to the curiosity of her friend.

"I got my hands on a recent study released by the World Health Organisation (WHO) which revealed that globally, only 44 per cent of urban residents live near an open public space, and that figure drops to 30 per cent among urban residents in low- and middle-income countries. Now, imagine what our little ones in our city must be subject to, what with the pollution, traffic, and overcrowding? This further restricts how and where they can play and essentially, experience childhood in its purest form. Not all children are born into affluent families where their parents can afford luxury apartments with landscaped gardens and state-of-the-art garden equipment. It's a tiny percentage. Not only have these oases of the upper middle-class and rich redefined the city's streetscape, but it has usurped large swathes of footpaths and adjacent pavements, according to my sources. Most children are forced to play in unkempt spaces, overcrowded public gardens and parks, many of which are far away from their homes [and hence, unsafe for very young kids to tread to by themselves]; else they must settle for broken footpaths or entrances to their apartments. We've let our children down terribly," she looked downcast.

She handed the papers over to Sir PM, who studied them for a few minutes as she poured their favourite adrak chai from a flask. "My Lady, this report should be tabled at my former bosses' office. They should be referencing it, to make a start at least, to make the city a safer, happier space for our young ones. Bombaywallahs are a resilient lot. They've made peace with the reality that the city cannot give back much. But we shouldn't let our children also grow up in an unfriendly city, where experiencing its green lungs means a tedious commute via road or rail, to reach the fringes of the city."

As they sipped on the chai, an empty BEST bus passed by, possibly headed to the Colaba Bus Depot. "Recently, this area was traffic-free because it hosted an open-air concert, as part of the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival. The audience was seated on these steps as star performers, including my favourite, Usha Uthup, took the stage right there! Such initiatives would be wonderful - where citizens enjoy the arts in open spaces. Imagine replicating this template in other wards!" she smiled.

"My Lady, with the newly-elected corporators in the BMC, I hope the younger members think of their children, and advocate change. Only a collective effort across wards will ensure they can safely experience their childhood in the outdoors. Until then, I'd rather not scout for any list with rankings of global cities and accessible open spaces because I might be unable to stomach our city's ranking," Sir PM bemoaned.

mid-day's Features Editor Fiona Fernandez relishes the city's sights, sounds, smells and stones...wherever the ink and the inclination takes her. She tweets @bombayana
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