No flutter, and hardly flattering

While on my daily commute to work that crosses Bandra Kurla Complex I was scanning my phone when a post by BNHS reminded me about an upcoming Butterfly Festival A few weeks before this alert at a session with a bunch of middleschoolers I had revealed about the variety of butterfly species found in the Aarey forest and the neighbouring Sanjay Gandhi National Park The sharing of trivia elicited ldquooohsrdquo and ldquoaahsrdquo from kids who were part of the audience for a literature festivalCut back to that moment when I read the butterfly post Soon after a sort of urban serendipitous interlude occurred during that cratermarred drive by the upcoming BKC Metro station My kaalipeeli had slowed down as it wormed its way through heavy traffic and I was able to spot a beautiful black swallowtail fluttering past the taxi window I wondered about this gorgeous creature and if it had a home nearbyMost of us are fully aware of BKCs infamous origins Onetime lush mangrove territory threatened and diminishing Mithi River filthy riverbed You get the drift apologies if the riverine pun sounded intentional Add to it the new piece in the manmade maze of construction the Metro station Itrsquos a fasttrack to further unpleasant sights since every passing day throws up a larger backbreaking pothole another broken or garbagestrewn pavement or a more clogged debrisfilled nullah And yes longer traffic jams Itrsquos a tragic slowplaying record that lakhs of us are subject to during our daily commute a twisted contradictory ecosystem where swanky glass buildings manicured lawns and BMWowning corporates remain possibly oblivious to this melee that borders their worldAmidst this absurd characterless cardboardlike panorama that gets panned out every day in front of my eyes Irsquove always wondered why the gurus who planned this district never felt it critical enough to include ample green public spaces in the mix especially given its ecosensitive geographyBarring a few blinkandyou miss green patches that skirt some sections of this business enclave itrsquos a concrete jungle Treelined avenues and clean footpaths mostly cater to those working within the enclaves Surely plans could have been drawn up later to make up for this terrible miss because the more you explore this cosmetic greentinted oasis the clearer the picture gets MNCs embassies and foreign banks and the new entrant ndash big builderbacked gated townships have gone all out to paint their addresses green but what about large parks for public accessCitybased environmentalists have cried hoarse about their ecologyrelated concerns around the Mithi riverrsquos course of which BKC constitutes a sizeable chunk We are no experts here but any keen observer of the cityrsquos urban planning and infrastructure will be left wondering about why such an obvious inclusion has never seen the light of day The few open public spaces are either inconveniently located for public access or are unsafe after sundown Then there are the huge open plots that dot the district These serve as parking lots or venues for gigs exhibitions awards ceremonies wedding receptions and yes the big moneyspinner ndash political rallies In the rainy season these become mega breeding grounds for mosquitoes However nobody seems to care about converting at least some part of these gigantic plots into a butterfly garden or a biodiversity park that could showcase some of the fauna that once existed hereAmidst these grey skies a sliver of light can emerge The surroundings of the new BKC Metro station are an eyesore if I were to put it mildly However I believe that it offers a golden opportunity to the powersthatbe if they can take the visionary road with our cityrsquos fragile natural ecosystem They should consider creating a green space from the flotsam and jetsam that is now integral to the area It will be doubly valued because the area is bound to get even more congested once the line becomes operational In fact this could translate into a template that can be followed with other Metro stations in the city as well space and logistics permittingThe rapid rise of gated communities near this Metro station makes it even more critical to look at this scenario As civic authorities look inward and crorepati flat owners sip on their tequilas from infinity dip pools that overlook heaven knows what the original landmass of this ecologicallysensitive area continues to gasp for breath How and if the gods choose to act upon this glaring oversight from an environmental perspective is anyonersquos guess but if the city is lsquoupgradingrsquo ndash as the nowcommon signage text greets us everywhere declares ndash we must upgrade in every sense More so in a city with a constantlythreatened green cover and where climate change has well and truly set in Until then that butterfly and its fellow species will have to flutter by and find its path in a polluted urban dwellingmiddayrsquos Features Editor Fiona Fernandez relishes the cityrsquos sights sounds smells and stoneswherever the ink and the inclination takes her She tweets bombayanaSend your feedback to mailbagmiddaycom