South Bombay in pain: Power cuts, traffic restrictions

It’s so rarely that one hears good things about the city’s infrastructure. “The Mumbai airport seems to be becoming a name to reckon with in aviation circles, and comparisons to Singapore’s Changi Airport are already being overheard on the city’s cocktail circuit, says CNNgo. Now, if only the roads that led to this fantastic, world-class airport  were half world-class…While on airports, “A proposal for a big hike in landing, parking, navigation and other charges at the Delhi and Mumbai airports is being considered by the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) and a decision is likely by early next year,” reports NDTV.[caption id="attachment_109224" align="alignleft" width="380" caption="President’s visit causes traffic restrictions and parking restrictions in South Bombay. Reuters"][/caption]Another rare incident – power cuts in tony South Bombay. “It was a hot and muggy Sunday for many south Mumbai residents, due to a 12-hour power cut caused by a fire in a transformer owned by the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST),” Hindustan Times reports.It’s rare in South Bombay, but routine in other parts of the state. “Load-shedding, a euphemism for deliberate power cuts, has been imposed across the state for hours varying from two to 16. This isn’t the first time that the state has resorted to load-shedding; worse, it won’t be the last,” says DNA.Coal shortage is partly responsible for the power crisis, and now we have a shortage of sand! “The current shortage of sand for construction work is expected to cause a delay in starting construction of 160 new major roads that the BMC has to build before monsoon next year, a Rs 550-crore project work on which is about to begin,” writes The Indian Express .Maybe that’s why the Gods are being addressed. “Even as the actual construction of the new roads awaits the availability of sand, Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray ‘inaugurated’ the roads project by performing a puja at Vikhroli east where one of the new roads will be built. With an eye on the upcoming civic polls, the party is on an ‘inauguration spree’ of sorts,” finds The Indian Express.All is not bad news with roads as Hindustan Times finds that the pothole repair work is proceeding well.To wrap up today’s city highlights, some more pain for South Bombay, as the President’s visit causes traffic restrictions and parking restrictions, says Hindustan Times.