Clean surroundings will only benefit citizens

Kala Ghoda. Pic courtesy/Wikimedia Commons

This paper highlighted a new initiative focusing on cleanliness. A number of organisations working for the city, and the BMC, too, have joined hands to keep areas just outside art galleries clean.

The idea is that patrons who enter these art spaces, at times, step out witnessing dirt and garbage around them. Even the immediate environment should be clean, aesthetics should not just be confined to the gallery or within a hall.

The idea is not aesthetics but a clean, spruced-up look. During the cleaning drive, volunteers even picked up a discarded sofa lying on the side of a footpath in the Kala Ghoda art district of the city. They are also going to push for art gallery owners/caretakers to get involved in the effort, as primary stakeholders.

Looking at the project holistically, it makes sense to see that the immediate surroundings are clean. In fact, this is a problem with several upscale facilities in the city. Add to that the many gated communities with their towers that are now increasingly part of the residential landscape. Enter the premises and you are transported into a clean, hygienic environment, pleasing to the eye and functional. Step outside and dirt and rot greets you.

It is vital that there are trash bins around these galleries, so that people dispose of their trash responsibly. No litter signs and indicators that even the space around is a tribute to what is inside, will help change mindsets and make people more aware about not just interiors but surroundings, too.

If different agencies in the city work together and give art gallery owners permission to not bar the public, but look after some space just outside, give it a facelift while ensuring cleanliness and maintenance that may work, too.

Of late, we have seen a mushrooming of art spaces in Mumbai. Let us now treat our entire city like a canvas and ensure a beautiful picture all around.