Just overheard this: “This city will take a beating and rise again”. It’s a very depressing subject to write about as bodies are strewn about and relatives are panicking about their near and dear ones in this city of mine. Love it or hate it, I stay here and have no regrets. But what gets my goat is the MISPLACED BRAVADO that is highlighted after each such incident. ‘Life goes on in Mumbai. It is a city full of resilient people’. THIS IS OUR PLIGHT.

It’s GOOD not to be paralysed by disasters (in our case, most of them are man-made such as the floods — due to bad drainage systems and a pathetic lack of civic sense — and riots — due to the senseless manner in which communal fires are stoked by unscrupulous and lumpen elements).

However, it’s NOT GOOD to use the resilience as an excuse for not being proactive. We have not learnt our lessons and keep repeating the same mistakes under the pretext that “Why learn when history repeats itself?” For instance, we haven’t learn any lessons from last year’s floods. The same potholes, the same excuses and probably the same losses (last year it was estimated to be nearly $1bn). AND THE SAME SENSE OF HELPLESSNESS

And these are not the first serial blasts that have rocked the city. They are occuring from March 1993 (not to mention the umpteen communal riots).

What do we need?

First: To look at disasters in the eye and take them in our stride. We Mumbaikars do that well.

Second: Investigate the causes of the disasters and ROOT THEM OUT. This we never learn.

Third: We have many NGOs and conscious citizens who are trying their best to WAKE US UP to potential disasters. LET’S JOIN HANDS WITH THEM if we can’t do much or AT LEAST not oppose them unwittingly by our callous attitude.

Fourth: Find out ways to be proactive. This will be my mission from today.

If you have any concrete suggestions, do point them out.