In an exclusive interaction with Marksmen Daily, Shri Gopal Shetty, the sitting Member of Parliament from North Mumbai Parliamentary Constituency, spoke at length on a number of issues vexing the common man today.
Shri Shetty is a known champion of the aam aadmi. In fact, very recently Shri Devendra Fadnavis referred to him as “aam aadmi ka sansad”, and commended his fighting spirit by saying he is a “ladne, bhidnewala sansad”, always ready to fight for and be the voice of the common man.
Over the course of his more than four decades as a public service representative, Shri Shetty has not lost the common touch. Having been born in a home with very humble means, he has over the years worked tirelessly on issues ailing the common man, such as sanitation, drinking water, electricity supply, and affordable housing for all. Under his leadership and guidance North Mumbai has witness several playgrounds, gardens, fitness and medical centers being developed towards welfare of the common people.
Housing: A Perennial Challenge
One cannot speak of Mumbai without talking about its slums. Not only are they a perennial feature of the city, they are home to a large part of our population. “50% of our city lives in homes, and 50% lives in slums. Our homes would not run without these citizens from slums. They have jobs as drivers, caretakers, teachers, and so much more. So we need to take care of them too for Mumbai to grow.”
Speaking of how the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) is helping change the face of Mumbai, he offered the example of the Dharavi Redevelopment Project. This joint venture between the Adani Group and the Government of Maharashtra recently announced that eligible residents in Dharavi will get flats measuring a minimum 350 square feet (sq. ft.), a figure that is 17% more than our redevelopment projects till date. For the record, these houses earlier measured 269 sq. ft., a figure that was increased to between 315 and 322 sq. ft. and 322 sq. ft. in 2018. This figure was arrived at to adhere to the minimum area mandated under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana for houses for the urban poor.
Redevelopment initiatives such as this will help drive the integration of the more marginalised sections of society into the mainstream, making it an exceedingly important socio-political consideration for Mumbai’s future growth plans.
Entrepreneurship: A key growth pillar
Over the last decade, India has grown by leaps and bounds, poised to become a $5 trillion economy within the next few years. PM Modi has put forth this ambitious target, one that is not far off given the country’s rapid economic ascension and the raft of ambitious reforms undertaken by his government.
But Shri Shetty urges us to be even more ambitious. “Why $5 trillion, we can target being an economy of $6 trillion. Whenever I hear of the target of $5 trillion, I am not satisfied. We are a nation of 140 crore people, if we all do our bit, we can create new opportunities and accelerate economic activity. Mark my words; The next 5 years will be a gamechanger for India. PM Modi’s government has set the platform for growth, now we just need to run along the path laid for us.”
Asked about the pillars underlying this growth, Shri Shetty was quick to emphasise the importance of India’s entrepreneurial nature in making this vision a reality. “The next pillar of growth will be entrepreneurship. It will lie in people like you starting your own business, and generating employment for more people. We need this dynamism. The government’s supportive policies have helped nurture this ecosystem, and we must ensure this momentum is carried on to create new businesses and jobs.”
