Make in India fire: Why functions don't take place at Chowpatty beach
On Sunday night, a Make in India event at Chowpatty Beach in Mumbai was marred by a fire, with authorities managing to evacuate everyone in time, and no casualties reported. The fire appeared to start below a stage where performances were under way, and the night was meant to be one of the showcase events of the Make in India week being held from February 13-18.
Though it is still unclear what started the fire, the strong winds helped the blaze spread quickly. Firefighting squads rushed to the spot and the government has been broadly appreciated for quelling the fire quickly and managing the situation. The state has already initiated an inquiry into what could have gone wrong. The state government had been permitted to hold the event on the beach - among the city's best known landmarks - after an interim order in their favour in the Supreme Court. A Bombay high court order had on January 28 turned down the state's application to conduct the function for a variety of reasons.
In 2001, the high court had appointed a committee whose task was to broadly monitor the activities on the beach. "The mandate of the committee is to regulate activities on the beach," said Rajan Jayakar, an advocate and member of the committee who appeared in court on January 28. "Many authorities have jurisdiction over Chowpatty: the city collector, the civic body, the police, maritime board etc. and there were all sorts of problems because lack of coordination. The court felt an independent committee was needed to monitor the activities at the beach."
The committee drew up a set of guidelines for the beach; these were accepted by the court in 2005 and have been in application since. No one opposed them at the time.
So what were the various concerns at play over allowing or disallowing functions to take place at Chowpatty both in general and in this specific instance?
1. Legal point of view: "What is most important is that the beach shall always be open to the public," said the January order. Political rallies and gatherings are also prohibited on the beach. The view of the sea should also remain unobstructed. "The idea of not granting permissions other than the exceptions [see below] was to give people a chance to enjoy the beach. And if you are a passer-by you should be able to have an unobstructed view of the sea," said Jayakar. The government had said it would be constructing a stage for the February 14 event and would be preparing for it up to 14 days in advance. This was found to be contrary to existing guidelines.
2. Silence zone: A portion of the beach falls within the ambit of a silence zone. No microphone activity is allowed within 100m of an adjacent college and hospital under the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000."
3. Concerns over safety: "Chowpatty beach, an open area is very difficult to regulate in case of any congregation and any misadventure may result in chaos, stampede and loss of human life" according to committee's guidelines quoted in the 2005 order. The January order expressed similar concerns: citing the congregation of a "large gathering" as a further problem. "It is not necessary to elaborate the adverse effects of such a large gathering on the beach," the bench said.
4. Concerns over traffic: There is no place for alighting and parking and this could result in traffic jams and obstruction of free flowing vehicular movements.
5. The exceptions: This includes allowing for Ganpati immersions and for the Adarsh Ram Leela Samiti to perform the Ram Leela and Krishna Leela on a portion of the beach after applying for permission. "Except the said activities on earmarked days, no other activities of any nature whatsoever shall be permitted on the said Chowpatty beach," the court had said in 2005. The court only granted the handful of exemptions because "these activities have virtually been associated with Chowpatty". Jayakar said they had been "performed from time immemorial" and "could not be stopped suddenly". "Except for these and Christmas function no other activities were allowed at Chowpatty. Ganesh Visarjan is not an activity but a passage to the sea," he said. Otherwise how do you keep the beach available and open for the people? Then every second person will apply to hold a function there."
In 2011, the state had got permission to hold a function at Chowpatty for the golden jubilee celebrations of the state. This was an exception granted, because it "was a special and unique occasion" the court noted, and conditions were imposed. "The function which is sought to be held on account of Make in India Week cannot be treated on par with the solemn function held on the occasion of the golden jubilee of the existence of the state," the court said. The bench did not find that the "mere presence of foreign dignitaries" qualified it for the same stature.