Varsha Gaikwad accuses govt of turning Mumbai into a gas chamber

A day after the Bombay High Court expressed concern over Mumbai’s worsening air quality and directed the formation of a five-member committee to monitor construction-related pollution, Congress leader and former Maharashtra Minister Varsha Gaikwad accused the Mahayuti government of turning Mumbai into a gas chamber in the name of development. At a Mumbai Congress press conference, Gaikwad and party workers wore oxygen masks to underscore the crisis and pressed for urgent intervention to curb pollution.

Citing a Harvard University study that estimates nearly 5,100 deaths annually in Mumbai due to pollution-related illnesses, she urged a comprehensive pollution-control plan, strict enforcement of environmental norms, and protection of green spaces. She warned that unchecked development and violations of safeguards were pushing the city toward a public health emergency. “These are not just numbers. These are families losing their loved ones,” Gaikwad said, noting that children are falling sick and seniors are struggling to breathe. She accused the administration of a “contractor-first, people-last” model, alleging rampant construction without safeguards, violations of environmental norms, improper allotment of open spaces and eco-sensitive zones to favored builders, and a troubling lack of accountability.

She stressed that Mumbai Congress would not allow contractors and cronies to decide the city’s future, signaling a push for accountability and a more transparent development framework. The High Court’s five-member panel to audit construction-site pollution reflects growing judicial concern as residents demand concrete steps to improve air quality, particularly with PM2.5 levels described as hazardous. The case highlights the broader debate over balancing urban development with public health and environmental safeguards in Mumbai.

Cover image source: Delhi breathes ‘very poor’ air; AQI at 332 🔗

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