Right idea, wrong place?

It looks like more than teething trouble at Mumbai's largest shopping mall. It looks like one more case of bad civic planning or, more likely, no planning at all. When Crossroads opened at Haji Ali not long ago, the newest concept in retailing came along with old-fashioned traffic snarls and parking problems. Crossroads' managers reacted fast, changing shop timings and improving their own parking facilities. But the worst is not over. Local residents have felt it necessary to band into an association (THARWAS) in order to find remedies for their many complaints. Traffic congestion in Haji Ali, always bad, is now much worse; naturally, with more idling engines, air pollution has increased; the pavement has been swallowed up; Ashoka and Gulmohar trees, Mumbai's most precious assets, have been cut down. Sensitive to the impact on locals, Crossroads' managers have tried solving problems -- security staff don't blow noisy whistles anymore, for example. But how many of the larger complaints can the mall solve andstill remain in the same location? For instance, one of its advertised attractions, one of its USPs in fact, is that it is open on Sundays and the whole family is invited to spend the day there at the shops, food and entertainment arcades. For local residents that simply means no respite from the congestion. Surely hardworking Mumbaikars should have the choice, like their counterparts in the US or Europe, of going to all-in-one retail centres. But anyplace is not the right place for them. In the western model, new jumbo supermarts and discount stores are better located on the outskirts of the city. THARWAS is correct to ask on what basis the BMC decided to allow a multi-storeyed shopping mall slap in the middle of a key north-south arterial road. No doubt Crossroads has, as claimed, received all the requisite licences to do its business. But the BMC must explain the principles, rules, and norms behind its decision to issue those licences. Did the BMC ask for an assessment of the number of shoppers neededdaily to keep Crossroads in business and study the local and traffic impact? Or is the BMC in the habit of sanctioning construction first (shops, flyovers, whatever) and asking questions afterwards?

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