Mumbai: Citizens raise red flag over tricolour fest

The weekend is here and come Monday India will celebrate the 75th Independence Day but not all houses may be able to hoist the tricolour as is the plan under the lsquoHar Ghar Tirangarsquo campaign While many societies and residents still wait for a flag which the BMC promised to deliver at every doorstep civic officials told midday that there is a shortageThe BMC is struggling not only in distributing the national flag to every household but is facing a tough time sending replacement for the faulty ones Though two more days are left for the celebrations these fall on a weekend Many Mumbaikars have complained that they have not received flags for the occasionKishor Gada secretary of Sara Residency in Pant Nagar Ghatkopar East said that none of the societies in the vicinity has received the flags ldquoWe applied on a central government portal for the flags and got a message saying we will get them But nothing has arrived yet We are now thinking of sending someone to the ward office to collect the flagsrdquo he addedSandesh Kadam a resident of Ghatkopar said ldquoWe heard that the BMC is giving flags to every household But we havenrsquot received one yet As my children are excited to hoist a flag we will buy onerdquo Sanjay Sonawane assistant municipal commissioner of N ward said ldquoWe have distributed 132 lakh flags until Friday and more will be given awayrdquoAnother civic official said the N ward has nearly 18 lakh houses but it received about 17 lakh flags of which some were defective ldquoInitially we distributed flags to shops and other establishments as well but now we are only giving it to houses because of the limited stockrdquo he addedIN PHOTOS Mumbai Police gear up for Independence Day paradeThe issue plagues almost every ward The BMC had given flags to ward offices which then distributed them to homes Initially the ward offices took the help of Asha workers but as the deadline came closer civic workers were also roped in Some wards took the help of former corporators as wellldquoOur former corporator Daksha Patel told us that even she didnrsquot receive enough flags No one got a flag in our area and today is the last working day before Independence Day We donrsquot know whether we will get a flag nowrdquo said Samir Niwale a resident of Pushpa Park in Malad EastMahesh Patil assistant commissioner of P North ward said the ward has a population of over 18 lakh but it received only 287 lakh flags until Thursday and all were distributed ldquoOn Friday we received the last stock of 91000 flags that will be distributed as soon as possible The target was to distribute it to every house but there will likely be a shortagerdquo said PatilDahisar resident Namita Khedekar said they are also waiting to get a flag ldquoMy daughter recently heard that the BMC is distributing the national flag and has been asking when we will get onerdquo said KhedekarAssistant Municipal Commissioner of R North ward Dahisar Mridula Ande did not respond to middayrsquos calls and messages for commentJayshree Khadtare from Kurla East said ldquoMy daughter is eagerly waiting for the flag We hope to get it soon otherwise we will buy onerdquoMahadev Shinde assistant municipal commissioner of L ward Kurla said ldquoThe distribution of the national flag is going on and most areas have been coveredrdquoAmol Chitre from Wadala said ldquoWe have not received the national flag from the BMC As this is a matter of national pride and we are celebrating Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav we will buy the flagrdquoldquoMost areas of the ward have been covered Flags are being distributed to households that have not got onerdquo Gajanan Bellale Assistant Municipal commissioner F north wardBMC officials distribute tricolour in Byculla on August 6 PicShadab KhanMeanwhile citizens who received defective flags are struggling to get a replacement ldquoI contacted P South ward and requested for a replacement and I was assured one But I am not sure they will be able to give me a replacement when many others have not got a flagrdquo said Sandip Sawant a Goregaon residentEarlier the BMC targeted to distribute 50 lakh flags to households and establishments but reduced the number to 35 lakh laterAdditional Municipal Commissioner Ashish Sharma on Friday said that the BMC has distributed around 40 lakh flags so farA south Mumbai resident said ldquoPrime Minister Narendra Modi told us to hoist flag outside the door and windows of our homes but we have not got free flagsrdquoAnother woman said ldquoHow will we celebrate the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav when we have not got the flags yetrdquoBuy your ownMunicipal Commissioner Bhagyashree Kapse Zone 7 said ldquoWe are distributing flags in every household We gave flags to societies residents and schools There were some defective flags because of which not everyone could be given flags We are trying our best to send flags to each home But people can purchase flags for pride of the nationrdquoWorkers at the Narayan stationery shop said ldquoThis year flag rates in the market have doubled In wholesale the rate increased by Rs 68 per small flag and by R40 per big flag After the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign both demand and sale have doubled Stocks at many shops are also overrdquoAdditional Municipal Commissioner Ashish Sharma didnrsquot respond to midday calls and messagesWith inputs from GMD