21 per cent Mumbaikars still have no access to cooking gas

As the need for dissemination of information becomes crucial during climateinduced disasters a study under the Mumbai Climate Action Plan has found that 617 per cent of households in the city have a mobile phone while 201 per cent own a computer with access to the internet But TV rules over the other devices with 85 per cent of homes having access to itThe study pointed to the extent of socioeconomic stability as well as access to information and telecommunication systems that are critical during disasters As per the study 36 per cent homes in Mumbai have radios only 9 per cent have landlinesThe same assessment also revealed that 457 per cent of people live in structurally unstable houses with temporary roofing materials while another 214 per cent of households without access to clean cooking fuelA BMC official said ldquoA larger chunk of the population in the city with whom communication is possible before and during such events can help authorities and communities prepare better efficiently manage evacuation plans and effectively carry out rescue operations It helps disaster management teams to relay quick messages and alert fasterrdquoCooking gas a dreamFor decades Laxmi Vangad 55 and her husband Laxman 60 have been using a chulha a small earthen or brick stove and are used to the smoke emanating from it The residents of Keltipada at Aarey Milk Colony are aware that the chulha is a health hazard but canrsquot afford LPG or other safer cooking fuelLaxmi Vangad uses a chulha at her Aarey home on ThursdayldquoWe have been using wood as fuel for generations Yes there is too much smoke at times I keep coughing for hours due to this but we have to live with it We are poorrdquo Vangad saidThe Warthes from the locality also face the same problem ldquoThere are many who have now shifted to LPG in our neighbourhood We too want to do it in the future depending on our income For now we cannot afford it There are subsidies but they are not suitable for us Neither the local corporators nor other elected representatives are concerned about our plightsrdquo said Radha Warthe 45Aarey resident Radha Varthe had a similar story to share PicsAnurag AhireIndu Jethe 32 another resident from the area said ldquoItrsquos been three years since we shifted from chulha to an LPG gas stove Gas is a luxury not everyone can afford here I have gone through all that so I understand their plight For eight months a year we used to collect wood to be used as fuel For four months of the monsoon there is no dry wood availablerdquoIndoor air pollutionldquoIndiarsquos path to carbon neutrality by 2070 will almost certainly rely on domestic measures that have already increased energy efficiency and reduced living costs for millions of people At the same time it is shocking to learn that 214 per cent of Mumbairsquos households do not have access to clean cooking fuel There is an urgent need for the government and the local civic body to intervenerdquo said Bhagwan Kesbhat founder Waatavaran FoundationWoodfired chulhas emit carbon dioxide methane and particulate matter raising indoor pollution and posing serious health hazardsKesbhat said ldquoThere is an urgent need to increase climate literacy among citizens as well as take immediate action to prevent further damage The government must revamp programmes to ensure that all underserved people have access to clean cooking fuel Local governments must identify neighbourhoods and households Ensure that programmes such as the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana which provides LPG connections to households that previously used traditional fuels reach everyone Indoor pollution is equally hazardous threatening the health of newborn babies as well as adultsrsquo lung capacityrdquoIndoor air pollution kills an estimated 6 lakh people in India every year though the data is not gendersegregatedAs per the newly released State of Global Air 2020 report outdoor and household particulate matter pollution contributed to the deaths of nearly 5 lakh infants during their first month of life in 2020 Almost twothirds of those deaths were linked to the use of solid fuels for cooking such as charcoal wood and animal dungData from the 2011 Census suggests that firewood is consumed by only 2 per cent of Mumbairsquos households The concentration of PM25 in these households is twice that of homes fuelled by kerosene and LPG as per an analysis conducted by WRI in 2021However the MCAP study says that the data is outdated and may not adequately represent Mumbairsquos vulnerability to climateinduced disastersWeak homes big riskMCAPrsquos analysis has pointed out that a high percentage of Mumbai residents live in structurally unstablecompromised houses with temporary roofing material This means these homes wonrsquot protect their occupants from the onslaught of climatetriggered disasters ldquoThe roof is the largest exposed area of a house As compared with walls and floors constructing a structurally stable and safe roof built of concrete burnt brick or machinemade tiles costs more Hence houses with roofs made of materials such as thatch mud polythene and asbestos are more vulnerable to extreme weather conditions such as heavy rainfall strong winds and heatwaves thereby exposing the residents to a greater risk of climateinduced hazards Poor housing conditions result in increased risk and vulnerabilityrdquo it saidWhile 737 per cent of the population lives in houses owned by them about 46 per cent stays in houses with temporary roofing materials which are termed unstable houses by MCAP itselfBilal Khan an activist of Ghar Bachao Ghar Banao Andolan which is dedicated to the cause of the right to housing told midday that passing the buck amongst the planning authorities is the reason why so many people continue to live in weak houses ldquoEach landowning authority has its own rehabilitation planpolicy Still they keep delaying procedures to rehabilitate these families People continue to live in precarious situations The situation in Maladrsquos Ambedkar Nagar where we are working currently is not good Every year during the monsoon residents suffer due to flooding The process of identifying eligible residents for rehabilitation is completed still the authorities are delaying the process The planning authorities whether it is BMC or SRA there is no community involvementrdquo Khan saidldquoLast monsoon the building adjacent to us collapsed It was very shocking We have seen incidents of roof collapses but buildings fell on some of the houses in our chawl Since then we too are living in fear but we have no option We cannot afford houses elsewhere due to high rentalsrdquo said Rubina Shaikh a survivor of the building collapse at Malwanirsquos New Collector Compound in June last yearA BMC official said ldquoMost of these unstable houses are unauthorised illegal or not in BMCrsquos jurisdiction For those that are in our jurisdiction we issue notices warnings and take actionrdquo853 per centHouseholds with a TV617 per centHouseholds with cellphone201 per centHouseholds with a PC with netFindings of the study under MCAP1 Households having radioOverall Mumbai 362 per centLowrank ward B 175 per centToprank ward RC 557 per cent2 Households with a TVOverall Mumbai 853 per centLowrank ward ME 753 per centToprank ward RC 924 per cent3 Households withPC and internetOverall Mumbai 201 per centLowrank ward ME 77 per centToprank ward HW 398 per cent4 Homes with landlineOverall Mumbai 93 per centLowrank ward ME 62 per centToprank ward HW 146 per cent5 Households having only mobilesOverall Mumbai 617 per centLowrank ward D 402 per centToprank ward L 757 per cent6 Families in owned houseOverall Mumbai 737 per centLowrank ward C 541 per centToprank ward RC 827 per cent7 Population in homes with temporary roofing materialOverall Mumbai 457 per centLowrank ward S 636 per centToprank ward C 108 per cent8 Households with access to clean fuelOverall Mumbai 786 per centLowrank ward ME 543 per centToprank ward RC 913 per cent