Of Mills........and Boons!

In the mid-90s the Maharashtra government  gave the green signal to several textile mills to sell of their surplus land.1854 - Mumbai got its first mill called ‘Bombay Spinning Mill’ famous for producing Cotton textiles to be exported to Britain.By 1870 there were about 13 mills and by 1875 total count of mills in Mumbai was about 70 which still went up to 83 by 1915. Famous mill locations were Lower Parel, Parel, Lalbaug, Byculla.

It's a whole new experience now...just walking around Parel.Earlier the narrow lanes filled with children playing gilli-danda or flying kites, voluptuous women draped in 9-yard saris, their foreheads smeared with vermillon sold vegetables and the strong  pungent aroma of spices, masalas and pickles tickled the nostrils..The millworkers lived in chawls with hardly any amenities, but the area was centrally located and connected by road and railways with other parts,schools and markets were near by and above all it was safe!

In 1982 Mumbai's Textiles Mill workers waged a historic and long battle under the leadership of militant leader Dr. Datta Samant. 28 years later, the mill workers are back on the path of struggle on the demand of rehabilitation. The struggle was brutally crushed by the ruling  party in collaboration with mill owners which resulted into forced unemployment- 80 thousand to 1 lakh workers were sacked ruthlessly,those mill workers who re-joined mill after the strike were humiliated, forced to work in inhuman conditions .                

In 1991 Sharad Pawar declared that Mumbai would be built on the lines of Hong Kong and Singapore: accordingly mill owners adopted a new strategy. They closed the mills and started redeveloping the mill-land for huge profits. Even profit-making mills like Bombay Dyeing, Mafatlal, Morarjee, Birla's Century, Thakarsey group and Piramal group mills were all closed down. The mill owners started re-development on their mills land for constructing residential complexes, hotels, malls and commercial complexes. The gigantic looms which had clanked tirelessly for over a century ground to a halt!

Construction actvity was booming with over 2 crore square feet of land up for sale! Luxurious residential complexes,  gleaming  glass-faceted commercial areas and malls now dot Lower Parel.Smartly dressed executives zoom in and out of the bylanes in their Zens and Benzes and the smoke and dust have long been replaced by exotic fragrances of  Ralph Lauren's Notorious and 24 Faubourg!