Little Gibbs ALM signs up for a larger civic role
Registers with BMC to become a LACG; detractors say it’s just a change in name
Laiq Qureshi. South Mumbai
The Little Gibbs Road advanced locality management (ALM) of Malabar Hills has become the first group to register with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) as a local area citizen’s group (LACG).
BMC wants to form 2,000 LACGs in Mumbai to tackle larger civic issues and have a greater say in their area’s problems. It believes ALMS, which currently address garbage segregation and composting problems, have too narrow a scope.
Additional municipal commissioner Subrat Ratho says, “We found out councillors used to question ALMS’ credentials. There was no formal structure to resolve issues above the ALM level. In many areas, officials were indifferent. We plan to formalise things so that LACG credentials are not questioned.”
While Indrani Malkani, trustee and secretary of the Little Gibbs ALM, thinks a LACG is a novel way to ensure BMC’s par
ticipation in civic problems, not everyone buys the premise.
Anil Bhatia of D Road ALM at Marine Drive says it’s just another name change and will amount to very little. “We have taken care of everything with our own efforts,” he says. “Having another citizen partnership group is not going to get us anywhere.”
Bhatia feels the city needs management at a micro level. “If every citizen looks after his own house and his own lane, we will have a clean city. What can the BMC do if citizens are not energised.”
But in some wards like B Ward, residents feel the BMC has failed to fulfill its role. “The ALM concept is good but it suffers from application problems,” says Vilas Mistry, a member of B Ward ALM. It needs active participation of BMC officers but that doesn’t happen. If the LACG equation makes BMC participation a legal necessity, only then will it make a difference.”
Karmayog (NGO Council), the organisation that has teamed with the BMC to form LACGs, hopes more ALMS will register to form LACGs. “ALMS that don’t register as LACGs can continue interacting with BMC like any other citizen group,” says Vinay Somani, convenor of NGO council.