No wonder, congestion is one of the main civic problems faced by Goregaonkars. As per the conservative estimate given by municipal authorities, the station area itself is inundated by over 4,500 licensed and unlicensed hawkers. As a result, five-minute walk to the Swami Vivekanand Road (S V Road) from the station can take a good 15 minutes during peak hours. It's quite interesting to note that Mayor Nandu Satam's drive to unseat hawkers from within 250 metres around the railway station has proved a total non-starter in Goregaon (West). While the hawkers selling vegetables, fruits, clothes, and an entire industry ofhousehold items disappeared just for a week, they seem to be firmly rooted near the station area now.

Former MP and MLA from Goregaon and once called the `Paniwali bai', Mrinal Gore of Janata Dal says: "The hawker's menace has to be handled more effectively. The municipal corporation did not develop the market areas in Motilal Nagar and Siddharth Nagar as earmarked in the development plan. Hawkers would not have flocked to the station road if they had been accommodated in the interiors." Moreover, she says, hawkers also exist due to the vested interests of shopkeepers who charge them for space. Gore was the former president of Goregaon Vyapari Sangh and member of grampanchayat in 1954.

Goregaon residents, especially the office-going crowd in the morning, are much troubled by the traffic bottlenecks throughout the suburb. Apart from the station area, the worst traffic jams are witnessed at the junctions of S V Road and M G Road (near Ratna Hotel) and the M G Road and 120, Link Road junction near BangurNagar. These bottlenecks are confirmed reasons for many missing their locals. The increasing number of rickshaws is another reason for perpetual traffic jams and the resultant pollution. Goregaon accounts for over 4,000 rickshaws. Interestingly, rickshaw owners of other suburbs also flock here due to the steady demand.

According to a local businessman, Arvind Sawala, the vehicular traffic near the station has proved hazardous to all shopkeepers and residents. The exhaust fumes also spoil the goods displayed in the shopping centres. Local corporator Dilip Patel laments the congestion near the station. He claims to have tried hard for a straight bus route (the present one being a merry-go-round) to the railway station. "Roadside legal and unauthorised constructions have spoilt the prospects of this bus route. And lack of initiative from the municipal authorities has obstructed the demolition of many an illegal structure near the station," says Patel.

Traffic congestion has posed serious problems on the LinkRoad, which is parallel to the main slum localities like Indira Nagar and Bhagatsingh Nagar and the two major BEST bus depots. The rate of accidents is quite high in this patch, more so because of lack of traffic signals. Considering the high risk faced by pedestrians, mostly school children in slum localities, a self-appointed `gurkha' had stationed himself at the Sejal Park naka. He used to collect money from the parents of the school kids hailing from slum areas. Unfortunately, the `gurkha' is missing from a few days, laments Vijay Gholap, a resident of Indira Nagar.

While Goregaon wears the crowded look now, it started as a neatly planned conglomeration of colonies like Jawahar Nagar, Sunder Nagar, Shastri Nagar, Mahesh Nagar and Motilal Nagar. These colonies were developed by the Mumbai Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) around 40 years ago. Most of these colonies are ground-level structures like row houses, which has given the peculiar small-town look to some parts of the suburb. And ithas also led to the conservation of the greenery. The suburb has five big playgrounds and ample parks.

Around two decades back, BEST Nagar was built which now accommodates over 1,000 households. As the population of the suburb grew, private builders came in the forefront. High-rise structures have flourished in the past two decades, which has put pressure on the civic amenities in the suburb, especially water supply. For instance, residents of Jawahar Nagar face acute water shortage for the last three years. A new water pipeline is being laid for this in the vicinity. Senior Shiv Sena leader, former MLA and Goregaon resident Subhash Desai says this 48-inch pipeline will be functional within two months. He said the water shortage is but natural since the present water pipelines cannot meet the residents' growing demand.

While on one hand water scarcity is a problem for Jawahar Nagar residents, a totally different problem is posed by natural water source detected in adjoining Siddharth Nagar. The Nirlon-BMCswimming pool, which was a swimming outlet for Goregaonkars, has been kept closed since July 16, 1997, due to underground water fountains breaking the pool tiles. These groundwater sources proved fatal for swimmers. Like the swimming pool, the Siddharth Nagar municipal hospital is also virtually non-functional. The 100-bed hospital, which could have been a solace to all Goregaonkars, is being underutilised due to lack of modern facilities. The municipal administration has no funds to run this hospital which is why it is being sub-let as a film shooting location at a rate of Rs 25,000 per day. The hospital was inaugurated five months ago.

With these set of civic problems, Goregaon (West), is fast-changing its face. Once known as a safe abode for the middle-class, the suburb now accounts for high crime rate. According to API Sunil Darekar, detection officer of Goregaon police station, the year 1998 has witnessed 76 housebreaking incidents (of which 16 were committed in the proverbial daylight), ten murders,43 chain snatching cases and seven extortion incidences! The suburb was much shaken after the reports of child lifting/kidnapping gang came to light two months back. While the police deny any organised gang behind these "stray" incidents, the average housewife still remains anxious of her child's whereabouts.