Can a game rescue Mumbai?

When we asked the BMC officials where do we put the boat they told us this is not your baap ka jaagir and asked us to remove the boats from the jetty says Sanjay Baikar The 45yearold resident of Worli Koliwada is a member of the local fishing community that identifies this as the land of their forefathers having lived here for generations earning their living by fishing off the coast of MumbaiLike others they too have been facing trouble due to the construction of the coastal roadmdashan underconstruction eightlane track along the western coast extending from Marine Lines in the south to Kandivli in the northBaikar secretary of Vanchit Machhimar Haji Ali Sahkari Sangathana Maryadit says fishing in the area has been affected in the last three years ever since construction began off Worli The fish dont come this side because of construction noise We make Rs 300 from selling the catch and spend Rs 500 on the boat diesel he says With livelihood affected the community has been living off loansSanjay Baikar We have written to senior officials A letter to the CM Uddhav Thackeray asking him to meet us has gone unanswered It has been two months he adds In a bid to have their voices heard the community is reaching out to people across the city for supportWill it be a community of Minecraft players that change the game for themSpeaking over a Zoom call the three members that make up the core team of Minecraft Mumbai explain why they are lending a hand to amplify Baikars voiceThe first push for the initiative came from Nivedita Bansal a Bombay International School alumna currently studying Global Sustainability Science at Utrecht University in the Netherlands Bansal 20 who also runs the popular social media page South Bombay Memes for Class Riddled Teens says while the graduation course brought to light the urgent need for sustainable solutions it also made her realise that a scalable solution would entail more than just turning vegan For our projects we are required to look at one issue from the perspective of different stakeholders Say a wind energy project from the perspective of farmers in the Netherlands who fear that it will affect the landscape she adds It made her realise that if more people in Mumbai could see the damage that the coastal road will cause the voices against it will be strongerNivedita BansalThis she realised could be achieved if a virtual model of Mumbaimdashwhich showed realtime effects of various infrastructure projectsmdashwas created This is possible on Minecraft a game first introduced in 2011 and on which people can build their own environments The awardwinning game has been world over used as an educational tool and also to build virtual replicas of cities and universities For instance London already exists in the Minecraft worldWhile Bansal is not a Minecraft player herself she connected with Dev Shah an 18yearold biomedical engineering student at the University of WisconsinMadison and Vedant Talreja 20 who is studying liberal arts and sciences at York University through the meme page after sending out a call for Minecraft buildersDev ShahShah says their Mumbai will be on the same scale as the real city with Geographic Information System data that will help build a rough version of the city Details such as coral for example will be manmade additions Bansal adds that the idea would be to make this virtual city available to those conducting future studies where different scenarios and infrastructure projects could be played out their pros and cons discussed before it goes on the floorsIt would also help people explore solutions to existing problems such as poor drains intense rain during a short spell and high tides that have recently flooded even traditionally safe areas such as Churchgate and Cuffe Parade says ShahThe idea of the youthled initiative says Bansal is to collaborate with the authorities for a solution that keeps the city at its coreVedant TalrejaComing back to the coastal road Talreja believes its a project that has been implemented without taking into account the several voices against it Even the Environment Impact Assessment has been rubbished by the Bombay High Court as a lip service that paints a false rosy picture Across the world theres a shift towards public transport and pedestrian friendly systems We dont want Mumbai to lag behindIn addition to recreating the city virtual brick by virtual brick the team is also reaching out to communities affected by the coastal road in order to understand how they have been impacted The team which is already 42 members strongmdashmost of them below 25 yearsmdashhave spent the last two months conducting their research and building the city a process thats nearly overA preview of Mumbai on MinecraftWhile the portal to the game when its ready will be available on the Minecraft Mumbai site for those who dont want to play virtual tours will be available on their social media handles as videosKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest news