Every time India’s commercial capital is hit by a disaster, the media can reliably be expected to invoke the “spirit of Mumbai” – a cliche ...
Every time India’s commercial capital is hit by a disaster, the media can reliably be expected to invoke the “spirit of Mumbai” – a cliche that recognises that the role of society in everyday life often eclipses that of the state.
In reality, the celebration of this Mumbai spirit of mutuality and resilience often seeks to compensate for the weaknesses of state institutions. But with the coronavirus pandemic, the state has not only been visible: it has exerted tremendous power in citizens’ everyday lives.
It has placed restrictions on working, mobility, collective life and practices in public space. It has also formulated policies related to preventing the spread of Covid-19, testing, equipping and managing health care systems as well as trying to provide relief to the people who were hurt by the lockdown and the pandemic.
Despite this, the state failed to help the people who needed support the most – the homeless, migrant workers, the residents of informal settlements.
New patchwork
For instance, many migrant workers went hungry because the state government decided not to give rations to those who did not have ration cards despite the municipal corporation being prepared to do so. Instead, migrant workers had to depend on cooked meals arranged by corporate social responsibility programmes...
