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Ramanath Jha, “Maha Yuti’s Vision Document for Mumbai: An Assessment,” ORF Special Report No. 302, Observer Research Foundation, April 2026.
Municipal elections were held in Maharashtra’s 29 municipal corporations in January 2026,[1] among which was for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), or the governing body of Mumbai.[2] The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the single largest party in the BMC, winning 89 of the 227 seats.[3] With the support of its alliance partners, the coalition reached 118 seats, securing a majority.[4] The BJP-led Maha Yuti Alliance (MYA) will therefore govern the BMC for the next five years. The elections also end the rule of the administrator in the municipal corporation, which had continued since March 2022—the longest such period in the BMC’s history.[5] The return of a popularly elected body ends an aberration that persisted for long, contrary to the spirit of India’s Constitution.[6]
Mumbai is widely regarded as the country’s financial and commercial capital[7] and, among cities, contributes the largest share—about US$310 billion or 6.16 percent—to India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).[8] The city is home to India’s largest entertainment industry and the corporate headquarters of some of the nation’s largest companies.[9] It is also the country’s most populated municipal corporation (12.44 million as per Census 2011).[10] It is thus worthwhile to examine the tasks before the newly elected BMC leadership, the challenges it faces, and the headwinds it may encounter.
The MYA manifesto for Mumbai[11] lists action points under 28 heads (See Table 1).
Table 1: Action Points of the Vision Document
| Head | Items |
| Physical Infrastructure | Potholes-Free Mumbai, footpaths, streetlights, Water, Solid Waste Management, Sewage Management, BMC Markets, Underground infrastructure |
| Traffic, Transportation and Public Transport | Traffic management, Parking, Making BEST the World’s best |
| Health and Education | Empowered Mumbai Through Education, Strong Healthcare System, Medical Education |
| Housing | Housing |
| Environment and Aesthetics | Clean and Healthy Mumbai, Clean Air, Beautification of Mumbai, Mumbai’s Cultural, Heritage and Tourism Development |
| Economy | Fast Track steps towards strong economy |
| Policies | Street Vendor and Hawkers Policy, Flood-Free Mumbai, Mumbai Fire safety Policy, Youth Welfare Policy, Empowering “Ladki Bahin” to Become Self-Reliant, Safe Mumbai, Marathi Aspiration, Open Spaces and Playgrounds, Palika Aplya Mobile Var, Flood-free Mumbai |
Some items in the manifesto are freebies, and others are peripheral in overall impact to the city’s quality of life. Such items mentioned in the VD are not taken up for discussion. The focus of the report is on commitments that are likely to have impact on the city’s liveability.
With regard to pothole-free roads, the VD states that roads below 9 metres in width will be asphalted, while those above 9 metres will be constructed in cement concrete. Wider roads will be equipped with utility ducts to prevent road digging. Land acquisition will be undertaken for the Development Plan (DP) roads. To eliminate road digging on account of 17 utilities, utility tunnels will be constructed across Mumbai. For better traffic management, multiple digital display boards will be installed to provide commuters with real-time traffic information. All footpaths will be developed using standard concrete blocks to improve city walkability and make the city more pedestrian friendly. In view of The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, registered street vendors will be rehabilitated within designated hawking zones, while all other areas will be declared non-hawking zones.
With regard to parking, community parking facilities will be created for roadside parking and separate arrangements for cars, autorickshaws, and two-wheelers. To increase parking capacity, underground and ground-level parking facilities will be constructed. Maintenance of all open spaces in the city will be carried out by the BMC, with local citizen groups and ALMs responsible for monitoring. In areas that feel unsafe at night, additional lighting will be installed.[12]
Mumbai will see the development of an extensive network of underground infrastructure. In the coming years, the Thane-Borivali underground tunnel will be undertaken, reducing travel time between the two areas. The Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR), the fourth major link connecting eastern and western suburbs, will also be completed. An underground tunnel from Orange Gate to Marine Drive, connecting the Eastern Freeway and Coastal Road, is proposed to ease traffic congestion in South Mumbai. A direct tunnel connection will also be created for BKC. In addition, a new underground corridor will run from the Bandra-Worli Sea Link via BKC Road to Navi Mumbai Airport. The Mumbai and Navi Mumbai airports will be connected by Metro. The Versova Coastal Road will be developed to Virar and linked with the Thane Coastal Road, creating an Outer Ring Road for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). An underground road network will also be developed in BKC.[13]
The manifesto makes a promise of uninterrupted supply of clean and quality water for the city's residents. The current water supply of 3,800 MLD will be increased to 4,700 MLD. Pending water projects will be completed within five years, and the entire system will be modernised. Citizens practising rainwater harvesting will receive concessions in water bills and property tax. Rainwater harvesting will be made mandatory for both new and existing buildings. Treated water from Waste Water Treatment Plants (WWTPs) will be used for non-potable purposes. Leak detection systems and cameras will be installed to detect water leakage. In every administrative ward, flow meters will be installed, and equitable water distribution will be ensured. A desalination plant will be set up at Gorai to convert seawater into potable water for Mumbai. A Water Management Authority Committee, with specialists’ participation, will be established.[14]
The manifesto commits to making Mumbai flood-free within the next five years. Measures will be taken to allow rainwater to percolate into the ground. Mumbai’s stormwater drainage system will be improved, and old and inefficient drainage systems will be reconstructed, along with four new underground retention tanks. Incomplete stormwater drainage works will be fast-tracked. In flood-prone areas, high-capacity pumping stations will be installed to ensure rapid water evacuation.[15]
Year-round cleanliness campaigns with public participation will be organised throughout the city, and Mumbai’s roads will be made garbage-free. Small vehicles will be provided for garbage collection in slum areas, with collection carried out twice daily. Public toilets in slum areas will be provided with electricity and water facilities. Separate systems will be set up by the BMC for e-waste and plastic waste. Mumbai’s coastline and rivers will be cleaned, secured, and maintained. To reduce urban heat, a scientific experts’ committee will be established, and policies will be implemented. Additional sanitation workers with better wages will be employed. Zero-waste wards will be developed on a pilot basis. Work on waste-to-energy projects at dumping grounds will be completed. All ongoing STP (sewage treatment plant) projects will be completed and modernised. Beautification of lakes in the city will be carried out. The number of trees and green zones across the city will be increased. A Beautification Committee will function with citizen participation. Public art and murals will also be displayed across the city on a larger scale.[16]
To improve air quality and the overall environment, a comprehensive environmental plan will be prepared for the city. To mitigate dust, anti-smog guns will be made mandatory at all construction sites, and roads will undergo regular mechanical sweeping and fogging. Gardens and green corridors will be developed in every ward. An environment budget of INR 17,000 crore will be allocated for Mumbai. An Environment Protection Authority (EPA) will be established, and the number of air quality monitoring stations will be doubled.[17]
To provide quality education, Municipal Corporation schools will be upgraded to international standards, and AI laboratories will be set up in all such schools. In the health sector, BMC hospitals will be upgraded, and dialysis and chemotherapy centres will be established. In every ward, clinics will be established and equipped with blood tests, medicines, and primary treatment. Mobile clinics for diabetes, blood pressure, and cancer screening will be organised every month in all areas. Government-run pharmacies will be made available outside BMC hospitals to provide affordable generic medicines. To address rising stress levels, free tele-counselling services by mental health professionals will be started. Satellite hospitals will be constructed for KEM, Nair, Sion, and Cooper hospitals. Dedicated heart hospitals will be established for treatment, where angiography and bypass surgery will be provided at subsidised rates. Considering the increasing number of cancer patients, a 10-storey hospital is being constructed at Nair Hospital, equipped with all necessary modern facilities, along with a super-speciality centre. In major BMC hospitals, increasing the number of teaching hospitals. For citizens older than 75, on-call ambulance services and home doctor visits will be provided.[18]
By 2029, all BEST buses will be electric vehicles (EVs), enabling zero-emission public transport. To reduce crowding in buses, the number of BEST buses will be increased from 5,000 to 10,000. To ensure last-mile connectivity from Metro and railway stations to residential areas, the frequency of “Midi” and “Mini” buses will be significantly increased. Women will receive a 50 percent concession on BEST bus travel. Bus terminals will be equipped with digital displays, CCTV cameras, mobile charging points, and Wi-Fi facilities. A committee will be formed to plan the financial restructuring of BEST and explore avenues for revenue generation. To strengthen last-mile connectivity to Metro stations, POD Taxi projects will be encouraged.[19]
To preserve and promote Mumbai’s culture, art, and heritage, a dedicated Cultural Department will be established within the BMC. To promote tourism in the city, a Tourism Department will be established within the BMC. To promote art and culture in Mumbai and enhance the beauty of the city, the Municipal Corporation will organise art exhibitions, music programmes, and cultural events. To preserve and promote Mumbai’s culture, art, and heritage, a dedicated Cultural Department will be established within the BMC. Using Augmented Reality (AR) booths, experiences of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s forts and the glory of Maharashtra will be made available to tourists. A world-class museum will be constructed at Hutatma Chowk. To provide civic services and facilities on mobile phones, AI and modern technology will be used.[20]
The manifesto lists the use of AI-based and digital platforms among the ways the city government will make Mumbai corruption-free. Development Control and Promotion Regulations (DCPR) 2034 will be implemented at the earliest. All municipal procurement will be carried out through the GeM portal. An AI-based platform will be introduced for building approval processes.[21]
To build a Developed Mumbai, the Development Plan (DP) 2034 will be implemented in full.[22]
The VD of Mumbai presented by the MYA is comprehensive in scope. It largely focuses on the city’s economic, physical, and social requirements. Many provisions appear well considered, reflecting consideration of the challenges involved. This report identifies seven such areas for comment.
The VD recognises that road digging and the quality of roads in Mumbai are major concerns. Its proposal to equip roads with utility ducts and construct utility tunnels across the city, asphalt narrower roads, and concretise wider ones is a reasonable suggestion that could provide relief from frequent digging and uneven road surfaces.[23] The idea of digital display boards providing real-time traffic information is also welcome. However, the plan to improve walkability by constructing footpaths with concrete blocks may face serious hurdles. It would require additional road space to be claimed for footpaths, leading to constriction of space for vehicular mobility. At the same time, the MYA’s commitment to accommodate hawkers (statutorily suggested at 2.5 percent of the city population)[24] may pose a huge challenge to pedestrian comfort. Both are most likely to share common footpath space with hawkers prone to expanding the space allotted to them, pushing pedestrians to walk on road space meant for vehicles.[25]
The gamut of physical infrastructure works, especially the maximisation of underground infrastructure, is sensible in view of the high demographic density in Mumbai[26] and shortage of surface space. The coastal road newly created has been well received by commuters and has made commuting in sections of Mumbai much easier.[27] However, the cost of creating such infrastructure would be high, and its maintenance in the city may pose a challenge.
With regard to water supply, Mumbai is among the better-served Indian cities.[28] Further steps proposed to strengthen it are welcome. The emphasis on leak detection is important since water systems in India unnecessarily lose high quantities of water on account of such losses.[29] Rainwater harvesting is already a mandatory obligation[30] and incentivising it through tax concessions may have salutary results. However, its promise of making the city completely flood-free appears to be a tall order. City permeability has already been compromised through excessive concretisation.[31] Construction of retention tanks, completion of stormwater drainage works and high-capacity pumping stations would help, but additional construction throughout the city leaves less space for water to escape, and the floods have now become an annual occurrence.[32]
Keeping the city clean is a core municipal function. While the city is relatively efficient in picking up almost all garbage generated per day,[33] the ability to segregate is limited; hazardous waste collection leaves a lot to be desired, and its landfill capacity is under strain with rising garbage. Mumbai is increasingly facing the rising problem of e-waste, plastic waste, and paper waste.[34] The commitment to pick up waste twice a day and develop zero-waste wards and advance waste-to-energy projects is desirable. Their effectiveness, however, will depend on the level of implementation achieved.
In the area of transport, considerable emphasis has been placed on Metro expansion, while bus services have received less attention. The once-famed BEST is in financial distress and has struggled to expand services despite rising ridership. Actually, its fleet has been shrinking, and routes have faced reduction.[35] Since BEST depends on financial support from the BMC for fleet expansion and operations, it has not received the level of support required. While the VD speaks of doubling Mumbai’s bus fleet, it does not indicate how this expansion will be financed.
The initiatives mentioned in the area of art and culture are welcome. However, it would be good to recall that the BMC, with support from the state government, had earlier established a Mumbai Commission of Art, Music and Culture (MCAMC).[36] However, the Commission faced flak from the councillors for its insistence on the quality of art installations that were brought up for approval.[37] Ultimately, the MCAMC was allowed to be buried, and currently it is non-functional.
A number of steps have been mentioned about parking. Surprisingly, nothing is mentioned about the work undertaken over five years by a group hired by the BMC to establish a Mumbai Parking Authority (MPA) with powers to regulate and streamline on-street and off-street parking, pricing, and policy.[38] The proposal for the MPA has already been submitted to the Government of Maharashtra and remains pending approval.[39]
Mumbai’s air quality has been deteriorating.[40] Several salutary steps have been proposed to be undertaken. However, in a highly built-up city, there is little discussion on maintaining a balance between the built and the unbuilt environment. Continuous construction activity is likely contributing to the deteriorating quality of the air.[41]
With regard to education, the promise of upgrading municipal schools to international standards appears ambitious. The current situation is concerning. While municipal schools have good physical infrastructure, their actual teaching quality is reflected in the fact that about 26 percent of students have deserted municipal schools.[42] Private schools are preferred, even by the poor and even if higher fees have to be paid. In the health sector, proposals to expand tertiary care, establish new super-speciality centres, and establish medical colleges and postgraduate institutes may be desirable in themselves. However, medical education is not a municipal subject.[43] Expanding into such areas risks diverting municipal resources from core responsibilities such as primary health care.
One of the most daring commitments made in the VD is the full implementation of Mumbai’s Development Plan (DP) 2034. The plan, prepared in 2015 and now fully approved,[44] has seen limited implementation in its first decade.[45] While many cities prepare such plans, there is no record of any Indian city having fully implemented it.[46] The average implementation does not go beyond a small percentage in its stipulated period of twenty years.[47] Non-implementation has several reasons. It could be on account of administrative negligence, lands under multiple litigations and proposed amenity lands having been encroached. However, the biggest reason is the municipal inability to find money to fund land acquisition. In Mumbai’s case, the DP was estimated to cost about INR 14,000 billion,[48] far beyond the city’s budgetary resources. Thus, implementing the DP would require the use of strategies other than acquisition or state allocation of a large grant. Neither appears plausible at this point, since the state’s finances are not in the best shape.[49]
Vision documents are not contractual obligations but are aspirational in nature and present a long-term direction. Even so, local vision documents are less abstract and deal more with doable physical, social, environmental, cultural, and recreational infrastructure that falls under the obligatory and discretionary functions of a city. However, the city’s ability to deliver them is premised on implementation capacity and financial robustness. In this regard, while the VD makes a commitment to address a whole host of deficits in the city, it is most likely to be seriously constrained by municipal capacity, lengthy processes, and financial constraints. It would be interesting to examine the actions and achievements assured in the VD at the end of the five-year tenure of this municipal administration. The MYA has promised to come back at the end of the five-year tenure with an Action Taken Report (ATR).[50] At the current juncture, a substantial portion of the VD is a tall order.
Ramanath Jha is Distinguished Fellow, ORF.
All views expressed in this publication are solely those of the author, and do not represent the Observer Research Foundation, either in its entirety or its officials and personnel.
[1] “Maharashtra Civic Polls: BJP Clinches 1,425 Seats across 29 Municipal Corporations,” The Hindu, January 17, 2026, https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/maharashtra/maharashtra-civic-polls-bjp-clinches-1425-seats-across-29-municipal-corporations/article70517641.ece.
[2] Ramanath Jha, “Municipal Elections in Maharashtra and the Myth of Urban Autonomy,” Observer Research Foundation, January 19, 2026, https://www.orfonline.org/expert-speak/municipal-elections-in-maharashtra-and-the-myth-of-urban-autonomy.
[3] “Mumbai BMC Election Results 2026: BJP Reshapes Maharashtra Civic Map, Wrests Mumbai from Sena and Pune from Pawars,” The Economic Times, January 17, 2026, https://m.economictimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/maharashtra-bmc-elections-2026-results-live-updates-election-commission-of-india-vote-counting-winner-loser-maharashtra-civic-body-elections-uddhav-thackeray-eknath-shinde-raj-thackeray-devendra-fadnavis-ajit-pawar-sharad-pawar-mahayuti-bjp-shivsena-ncp-polls-latest-news/liveblog/126555449.cms.
[4] Dinesh Tripathi, “BMC Polls Election Results 2026: Mahayuti Wins 118 Seats to Seize Mumbai’s BMC Crown,” India Today, January 17, 2026, https://www.indiatoday.in/india/video/dipesh-tripathi-reports-mahayuti-wins-118-seats-to-seize-mumbais-bmc-crown-ytvd-2853348-2026-01-17.
[5] Manasi Phadke, “Why Stakes Are High As BMC Comes under Administrator without Elected Members after 40 Years,” The Print, March 9, 2022, https://theprint.in/india/governance/why-stakes-are-high-as-bmc-comes-under-administrator-without-elected-members-after-40-years/862515/.
[6] The Indian Constitution, “Constitution (Seventy-Fourth) Amendment Act, 1992,” https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/upload_document/74amend.pdf.
[7] Janifha Evangeline, “Mumbai – India’s Commercial, Entertainment, and Financial Capital,” Industry Outlook, 2026, https://www.theindustryoutlook.com/states-and-cities/panorama/mumbai-india-s-commercial-entertainment-and-financial-capital-nwid-972.html.
[8] Evangeline, “Mumbai – India’s Commercial, Entertainment, and Financial Capital”.
[9] Internet Geography, “What Is the Location and Importance of Mumbai?,” 2025, https://www.internetgeography.net/topics/what-is-the-location-and-importance-of-mumbai/.
[10] MyBMC, “Mumbai City,” https://www.mcgm.gov.in/irj/go/km/docs/documents/MCGM%20Department%20List/Environment/Docs/04%20Source%20Apportionment%20Report-MCGM.pdf.
[11] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026,” https://www.devendrafadnavis.in/bmc26manifesto-english/.
[12] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[13] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[14] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[15] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[16] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[17] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[18] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[19] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[20] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[21] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[22] Maha Yuti Vision Document, “Vision Document of BJP – Shiv Sena – RPI – BMC-2026”.
[23] Amey Tirodkar, “Mumbai: Maximum Digging, Minimum Relief,” Frontline, April 15, 2025, https://frontline.thehindu.com/society/mumbai-road-concretisation-pothole-bmc-traffic-chaos/article69451935.ece#:~:text=A%20%E2%80%9Cpothole%2Dfree%E2%80%9D%20city,Concrete%20facts.
[24] The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, https://www.indiacode.nic.in/handle/123456789/2124?view_type=browse
[25] Bhavika Jain, “Mumbai: Hawkers Take over Footpaths, Pedestrians Pushed to the Road,” The Times of India, January 18, 2017, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/mumbai-hawkers-take-over-footpaths-pedestrians-pushed-to-the-road/articleshow/56819534.cms.
[26] “Mumbai Is the World’s Second Most Crowded City,” Mumbai Mirror India Times, May 25, 2017, https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/mumbai/other/mumbai-is-the-worlds-second-most-crowded-city/articleshow/58838192.html.
[27] Sampada Belose, “Impact of Mumbai Coastal Road: A Game-Changer for Real Estate,” Dwello, January 20, 2025, https://dwello.in/news/impact-of-mumbai-coastal-road-a-gamechanger-for-real-estate.
[28] Dhaval Desai, “Quality of Water in India’s State Capitals,” Observer Research Foundation, December 3, 2019, https://www.orfonline.org/expert-speak/quality-of-water-in-indias-state-capitals-58308.
[29] Sabah Virani, “40% of Mumbai’s Water Lost: How Can Water Leaks Be Fixed?,” Citizen Matters, December 9, 2021, https://citizenmatters.in/mumbai-water-leaks-and-fix/#:~:text=See%20What%20Your%20%E2%82%B9500%20Can%20Do&text=On%20any%20given%20day%2C%204173,hydraulic%20department%20of%20the%20MCGM.
[30] “3,000 Mumbai Buildings Have Built Rain Water Harvesting Units in 14 Years: BMC,” The Indian Express, August 14, 2021, https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/3000-mumbai-buildings-have-built-rain-water-harvesting-units-in-14-years-bmc-7453312/.
[31] Jashvitha Dhagey, “Why Mumbai Has Failed to Become Flood-Ready,” Question of Cities, July 26, 2024, https://questionofcities.org/why-mumbai-has-failed-to-become-flood-ready/.
[32] Kanchan Srivastava and Aditi Tandon, “Another Monsoon, Another Deluge: Why Mumbai Gets Inundated Nearly Every Year,” Scroll.in, July 10, 2019, https://scroll.in/article/929936/another-monsoon-another-deluge-why-mumbai-gets-inundated-nearly-every-year.
[33] Alexander Brown, “Mumbai, India City Waste Management Profile,” The Circulate Initiative, July 2024, https://www.thecirculateinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/City-Waste-Management-Profile-Mumbai-India.pdf.
[34] Brown, “Mumbai, India City Waste Management Profile”.
[35] SVR Srinivas, “Mumbai’s BEST Crisis: Is There a Plan to Improve City’s Bus Services?,” HW News English, YouTube video, 15:18 min, June 21, 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boNKivMJZjQ.
[36] Chaitanya Marpakwar, “CM Clears Mumbai Arts Commission,” Mumbai Mirror India Times, March 3, 2018, https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/mumbai/civic/cm-clears-mumbai-arts-commission/articleshow/63142420.html.
[37] Chaitanya Marpakwar, “Sena Asks CM to Scrap ‘Inactive’ Arts Commission with ‘Ego Issues’,” Times of India, February 23, 2022, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/sena-asks-cm-to-scrap-inactive-arts-commission-with-ego-issues/articleshow/89759169.cms.
[38] Radha Puranik, “Interview: Plan to Automate Collection of Fines, Says Mumbai Parking Authority,” Citizen Matters, May 24, 2022, https://citizenmatters.in/interview-mumbai-parking-authority-new-management-plan/#:~:text=The%20Mumbai%20Parking%20Authority%20(MPA)%20was%20formed,day%20*%20Understanding%20off%20street%20parking%20occupancy.
[39] Ashok Datar, “Parking in Mumbai: A Case Study of Mis-Governance,” Governance Now, July 3, 2023, https://www.governancenow.com/views/columns/parking-in-mumbai-a-case-study-of-misgovernance.
[40] Jashvitha Dhagey, “Clearing the Air on Mumbai’s Smoggy Atmosphere,” Question of Cities, February 24, 2023, https://questionofcities.org/clearing-the-air-on-mumbais-smoggy-atmosphere/.
[41] Dhagey, “Clearing the Air on Mumbai’s Smoggy Atmosphere”.
[42] “Enrolment in BMC Schools Plummets despite Budget Hike,” Mumbai Mirror India Times, September 2, 2025, https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/mumbai/enrolment-in-bmc-schools-plummets-despite-budget-hike/articleshow/123641822.html.
[43] The Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act, 1888, https://www.indiacode.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/16119/1/the_mumbai_municipal_corporation_act.pdf.
[44] CBRE India, “Mumbai Has a New ‘Plan’ for 2034,” May 17, 2018, https://www.cbre.co.in/insights/articles/mumbai-has-a-new-plan-for-2034.
[45] “BMC Presents over ₹ 74,000 cr Budget for 2025-26,” The Hindu, February 4, 2025, https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/bmc-presents-budget-over-74000-crore-for-2025-26/article69179141.ece.
[46] Avish Naredi and A.R. Suman Sharma, “Evaluating the Performance of Master Plans in India’s Tier-1 Cities: Implementation Gaps, Spatial Outcomes,” IJRTI, January 2026, https://ijrti.org/indexx?v=11&i=1&m=&y=.
[47] Niti Aayog, “Reforms in Urban Planning Capacity in India,” September 2021, https://www.niti.gov.in/sites/default/files/2021-09/UrbanPlanningCapacity-in-India-16092021.pdf.
[48] ORF Mumbai, “Part 2: Understanding Mumbai’s Development Plan 2014-2034,” YouTube video, 1:50: 04 hours, July 11, 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3P5WBoGah2o.
[49] Sudhir Suryavanshi, “Maharashtra Debt Moves Up from Rs. 7.8 L cr to 9.3 L cr This Year,” The New Indian Express, December 12, 2025, https://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2025/Dec/12/maharashtra-debt-moves-up-from-rs-78l-cr-to-93l-cr-this-year.
[50] Snehal Mutha, “Mumbai Civic Polls: Mahayuti Releases Manifesto, Promises Bus Concessions for Women among Other Benefits,” The Hindu, January 11, 2026,
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Dr. Ramanath Jha is Distinguished Fellow at Observer Research Foundation, Mumbai. He works on urbanisation — urban sustainability, urban governance and urban planning. Dr. Jha belongs ...
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