Over the years, open grounds in the city have been so vanishing quickly, that more than 70% of schools in Mumbai do not have playgrounds. A whole generation of children are growing up indoors at a time when they should be out playing games and honing their physical skills. They have been deprived a full childhood, and whoever is responsible for this should be tried under child abuse laws.

Developers are gnawing away at the once sprawling patches of green that could be seen from the skies during a helicopter ride or in satellite imagery. Relentless construction has led to increasingly claustrophobic conditions in the city. Over time, the city’s open spaces were grabbed and converted to miniature gardens, but even here, the citizens find they have a smaller claim than the political class or the country’s elite, who name the gardens after their family members. Never mind that their relatives’ names mean nothing to the public. In most cases, a background check will not even reveal any significant social contribution made by the persons to justify naming public parks after them. Under the guise of caretaking, these public spaces are then slowly taken over and hired out for wedding, dandiya programmes or other events, so some people can make a killing.