A new man at the helm means new promises and a different perspective. On Monday, his first day of taking over the BMC's reins, municipal commissioner Pravin Pardeshi has already instructed the completion of pending pre-monsoon work on a war footing. He is also looking at resolving communication gaps with environmentalists to eliminate opposition to the Coastal Road. Pardeshi will also look to increase the revenue of the country's richest civic body by allowing paid parking on roads. He also has plans to help BEST reduce its losses.

All of these are on top of the mind when it comes to this city which has so many challenges. We can only hope that Pardeshi's words are followed up by action, as this will have a good, two-pronged effect. First, of course, it will solve a number of issues plaguing the city. Second, it will start chipping away at the stereotype of BMC being a body which is ineffective, toothless and procrastinates on a number of problems.