Collapse in Ghatkopar – A moment to reflect on ailing municipal governance

Source-This post on Collapse in Ghatkopar – A moment to reflect on ailing municipal governance has been created based on the article “Collapse in Ghatkopar, a call to reform” published in “The Indian Express” on 18 May 2022.

UPSC Syllabus-GS Paper-2– Issues and Challenges Pertaining to the Federal Structure, Devolution of Powers and Finances up to Local Levels and Challenges Therein.

Context-The article discusses the tragic hoarding crash in Mumbai’s Ghatkopar suburb that claimed 16 lives and injured 75 people. It highlights that urban governance lacks sufficient authority and responsibility to ensure the well-being of its residents. Collapse in Ghatkopar

What are the reasons behind the tragic accident?

1) Violation of Rules -The hoarding that collapsed was three times larger than the size sanctioned by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and had a weak foundation.

2) Shifting Accountability-The BMC asserts that it informed the Government Railway Police (GRP), which is the landowner, about the irregularities. However, no action was taken by the GRP.

3) Lack of Pro-activeness– Information gathered from Mumbai’s observatories indicates that there were dangerous wind speeds at the time when the billboard collapsed. The authorities did not learn any lesson from similar incidents in Pune (2017) and Pimpri-Chinchwad (April 2023), which also claimed lives.

What are the issues in urban governance in India?

1) Devolution of Powers-The 74th amendment requires state governments to devolve 18 functions, including land use regulation, to municipalities. However, as per NITI Aayog report, no state has delegated all 18 functions to civic bodies.

Read more- Issues with Local Governance in India

2) Overlapping Jurisdictions-Urban local bodies are often constricted due to overlapping jurisdictions with other state agencies, leading to confusion and shifting of accountability. For ex- In Delhi, there is much confusion amongst the city’s municipality, DDA and PWD over road maintenance.

3) Regular Civic Election– The failure of state governments to hold civic body elections violates the directives of the Supreme Court in the Suresh Mahajan case (2022). The court ordered both state governments and State Election Commissions (SEC) to ensure the establishment of a newly elected body in all municipalities before the expiration of the outgoing council’s five-year term. For ex- Bengaluru which is currently facing a severe water crisis does not have elected corporators.

Question for practice

Highlight the reason behind the tragic accident in Mumbai. Explain how poor urban governance can be held responsible for this?