Crumbling roof, unsafe walls: Shocking conditions at Mumbai's Bandra BEST depot

A visit by BEST committee member Nitin Nandgaonkar to the bus depot near the western side of Bandra railway station has shed light on shocking working conditions The very roof under which staff members operate is held in place by a wire mesh net so that loose chunks of concrete do not fall Concrete portions of the wall are in a bad state and BEST staffers posted there said they work in such dangerous office conditions for six to seven hours every dayThe wire mesh that prevents the roof from collapsingldquoThis is beyond shocking I term it cruelty About 300 people are working at this depot These people run Mumbais second lifeline and these are their working conditions Even the basic maintenance is not being done I cannot stand thisrdquo Nandgaonkar saidThe ceiling of the doctorrsquos cabinStaffers said that the wire mesh had been installed five to six months ago after repeated complaints when the problem became more acute ldquoThe condition of the restroom and the racks kept here are just another example This is how the BEST administration is treating its own staffers like animals This looks like some bigger conspiracy Who will be responsible if anything happens to any staffer If the issues are not addressed we will launch a protest to fix thisrdquo he said Last week Nandgaonkar visited Mulund and Vikhroli bus depotsOfficial SpeakA dilapidated wall above the window in Bandra West depotWhile no one was willing to speak on record Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport BEST officials said there were complaints about concrete falling near the staircase of the depot after which the entire depot was covered with a net as a temporary measure As a permanent measure BEST plans to develop several dilapidated and underutilised bus depots with enhanced staff amenitiesVoices of concernThe main concourse of the BEST bus depot in Bandra WestA bus driver lsquoWe come here every day not knowing if something will fall from the ceiling The mesh holding the concrete is the only thing keeping us safe Itrsquos scary but we have no choice mdash we still have to work our shifts These are just temporary measures Nobody has taken proper action despite repeated complaints to the undertakingrsquoA union member and staffer lsquoDuring the monsoon it gets even worse with water seeping through cracks We serve the public every day but our own safety seems to be ignored It feels like wersquove been forgottenrsquoThe crumbling depot lobby PicsRajendra B AklekarA BEST employee lsquoThis is actually stressful Wersquove reported this multiple times but repairs never happen The walls are crumbling and the ceiling looks like it could collapse anytime We are expected to keep operations running smoothly in such conditions Itrsquos mentally stressful to work like this every dayrsquoA bus conductor lsquoSometimes small pieces of concrete actually fall but now it is normal for us We are inside the staff rooms to eat tiffin and rest between shifts We just hope someone takes responsibility before itrsquos too latersquoProblems highlightedCrumbling concrete wallRoof slabs caught in the wire mesh netStaff room racks and overall condition are pitiableDoctorrsquos cabin inside the depot is also dilapidated