For Mumbai

Mumbai.... what can I say?? My home sweet home, my native place. So much has been said & continues to be said about this "City of Dreams". The recent terrorist attacks notwithstanding, still the safest & best city in India, though I must say Ahmedabad is catching up real fast. But Mumbai isnt pulling away. Sadly, its deteriorating. Why? Population explosion, congestion etc. The reasons we all know. But the reasons behind these reasons.
There begins the great debate - 'Locals vs Outsiders'. How do you define a 'Local'? To me any domiciled citizen is a local, whatever his mother-tongue is. I have Gujarati, Malayalee, Kannada, Bengali, UPiite & Bihari friends and acquaintances who to me are as Maharashtrian as I am. Then there comes the set of people who form the skilled workforce - engineers, doctors & other professionals from around the country, who come here to form a kind of symbiotic relationship with the city. They utilize the opportunities the city gives them, & they give it back in their own ways. These are the two sets of people that form the fabric of Mumbai. Thisis what makes Mumbai tick. But Mumbai faces a problem. We have a third set of people - illegal migrants. I do sympathize with them. Nobody likes to leave their home. It is the extreme poverty that drives them. But is exhausting this great city a solution? UP and Bihar produce the largest percentage of the Indian Armed Forces. Their capabilities are unquestionable. Both states also produce a large number of IAS officers. Ironic then, that they are the most illiterate & backward states in the country. The reason - their politicians. And, owing to our population - based division of Parliamentary seats among states, these same politicians are the reason for the problems our wholenation faces. I'm pissed off seeing thugs n buffoons like Lalu and Amar Singh represent our country. So why blame the Shiv Sena and MNS? I admire the Thackerays. They have their own way of doing things. You might not agree with their ways, but shut up and listen to what they want to say. Or would you rather hear Lalu explaining how he digests cow fodder, and Amar Singh going on about how the Delhi Police faked an encounter with one officer even getting himself killed to make it look real?
Maybe the MNS is overzealous, but the real problem needs to be brought into focus. I always try to debate this with my friends from other metropolitan cities like Kolkata & Ahmedabad. If my city faces a problem that needs to be solved, there might be a hundred ways to do it. But if I dont have the guts to come up with a better solution, the least I can do is support anyone who atleast has one. Now, I'm not naive to ignore that politicians want votes. But if they are taking up a real issue, can we not use our voting power to make sure they do solve it. The problem Mumbai faces echoes the problems of India - corruption, indifference by all people, not just politicians. Just maybe, Mumbai will be the torch-bearer for the rest of the country on the path to progress.