<p>Mid-Day has introduced a new initiative: DEAR GOVERNMENT.</p>
<p>In this your favourite newspaper will print your questions to BMC, Police and State Government every Monday, and will get answers on your behalf. Be it roads, water crime, government policy, whatever your query, write to us at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:mailbag@mid-day.com">mailbag@mid-day.com</a>&nbsp;or tweet to us at&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/mid_day?s=11" rel="nofollow">@mid-day</a>&nbsp;and we will try and get responses to your problems.</p>
<h2>Problems</h2>
<h2>Food vendor nuisance</h2>
<p>How are residents to know who the licensed <strong><a href="https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai/mumbai-news/article/carry-out-verification-of-all-hawkers-helpers-in-mumbai-including-alleged-bangladeshis-bombay-high-court-23622194" rel="nofollow">hawkers</a></strong> are?&nbsp;<br />Hawkers and their stalls are only increasing every day in Dadar. The footpath in the area where I have been living for the past 65 years has vanished. The morning darshans these days are dirty umbrellas used by these hawkers.. Afternoons are miserable for senior citizens in the area right up to midnight. Complaints have been made to the police as well but it&rsquo;s the same story the next day. We are paying tax and enjoyed by these hawkers. Who can help us?<br /><strong><em>Usha Jeyakumar</em></strong></p>
<h2>Dead signal</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/apr/Signal_e.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" /></p>
<p>For decades the signal at the crossroads off Bandra Reclamation going to the highway, with Mahim on the right and Bandra on the left was functioning well. Over a month or so, this main signal has suddenly been non-operational post-midnight. The traffic at this junction is chaotic even at this late hour besides being dangerous. I have complained to the traffic police and even sent him a video of the vehicles and bikes crisscrossing at full speed. I received an immediate response saying &ldquo;we have informed <strong><a href="https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai/mumbai-news/article/brihanmumbai-municipal-corporation-finishes-sv-road-pipeline-work-swiftly-traffic-normal-in-bandra-west-23623363?ຈ-breakingnews" rel="nofollow">Bandra traffic </a></strong>division for necessary action&rdquo;. Till date no action has been taken. To add to our woes, a number of streetlights on the Mahim causeway have not been working for months and the road is in complete darkness. It is a disaster waiting to happen!<br /><strong><em>Meldan D&rsquo;Cunha</em></strong></p>
<h2>Cancelled trains</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/apr/Local-train_e.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" /></p>
<p>The Central Railway should explain why these two locals 97316 (6.28 am) and 97730 (8:36 am) Thane -VT are perennially cancelled over the last year and what steps are being taken to restart them. A reply is eagerly awaited from the authorities concerned.&nbsp;<br /><strong><em>Joseph D&rsquo;Silva</em></strong></p>
<h2>Stray dog menace</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/apr/Dogs_e.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" /></p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai/mumbai-news/article/mumbai-stray-dog-bites-multiple-people-in-goregaon-west-residents-live-in-fear-23607534" rel="nofollow">Stray dogs </a></strong>are increasing rapidly in every lane, road and path in Mhatre Wadi, west of Dahisar railway station. Due to their terror, the residents of the area have to travel with their lives in their hands even during the day and at night for two-wheeler riders too. As the municipal corporation is failing to control them, it has left no option for residents but to invite &lsquo; leopards &lsquo; from the nearby national park for a &lsquo; dogs feast&rsquo;<br /><strong><em>Kiran P Chaudhari</em></strong></p>
<h2>Responses</h2>
<p>After Mumbaikars sent in their questions and woes to mid-day last Monday, some of the authorities concerned responded. We haven&rsquo;t given up on the rest. We shall continue to hold authorities accountable for the state of the city.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Kabutarkhana nuisance</h2>
<p><strong>Bapsy Framji Patel</strong><br />Response: A senior civic official of the D ward said, &ldquo;The ward has been taking action against all those who feed pigeons at public places.&rdquo; Stating that the administration is aware of the situation at Forjett Street, the official said, &ldquo;Those who feed pigeons here have found ways to evade the flying squad that inspects the area twice a day. The feeders will arrive just after the squad has left, and leave food at the location. Several cleaning rounds prove inadequate.&rdquo; The official stated that action is going on and work is done every day to discourage feeding pigeons at the Forjett Street location.</p>
<h2>Landline not working</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/apr/Phone_e.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" /></p>
<p><strong>Menino Gomes</strong><br />Response: &ldquo;We will pass on the message to the exchange concerned&rdquo; said an MTNL official. &ldquo;Both MTNL and BSNL have become orphans, as their existence is in question. There is nobody to maintain these dying lines, as they have no staff, and the vendors to whom the work has been outsourced do not have technically qualified personnel to handle it. The cables are being stolen, and the moot issue is: who will fix the problem?&rdquo; said MP Arvind Sawant, senior leader of Shiv Sena (UBT), who once headed the MTNL employees&rsquo; union.</p>
<h2>Garbage on road</h2>
<p><strong>Shilpa Nayak</strong><br />Response: A<strong><a href="https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai/mumbai-news/article/mid-day-ask-the-govt-citizens-raise-concerns-over-illegal-stalls-pigeon-nuisances-and-potholes-23623219" rel="nofollow"> BMC</a></strong> official said action will be taken against those who dump garbage at public places. But, if the land is privately owned, it cannot be cleaned by the Solid Waste Management staff. &nbsp;Citizens can complain on BMC website or on social media. The link is...<br />complaint: https://portal.mcgm.gov.in/irj/portal/anonymous/qlcomplaintreg?guest_user=english</p>
<h2>Illegal stall on footpath</h2>
<p><strong>Jayesh Doshi, Satish Bokadia, Haresh Doshi</strong><br />Response: &ldquo;We will have to inspect the stall, before making any comment,&rdquo; said an official from Aarey requesting anonymity.</p>

Mumbai: Mid-Day’s DEAR GOVERNMENT initiative raises citizens’ civic issues—from hawkers and traffic chaos to safety concerns—and seeks answers from authorities

Mumbai: How can citizens tell which is a licensed hawker and which is not? mid-day asks Maharashtra govt

Mumbai Diary: Monday Dossier

Mid-Day’s DEAR GOVERNMENT initiative amplifies citizens’ complaints on civic issues—from hawkers to traffic and safety—seeking accountability from authorities and publishing official responses every Monday

Mid-Day to govt: How can citizens tell licensed hawkers from unlicensed ones?

Trending Stories

Latest Photos

Latest Videos

Latest Web Stories

Mid-Day Fast

Home / Mumbai / Mumbai News / Article / Mid-Day to govt: How can citizens tell licensed hawkers from unlicensed ones?