A special status of 'entertainment zones' will be given to non-residential areas which will be open 24/7.
Mumbai shall soon own the night. The city will soon have eateries, pubs, bars, and entertainment joints open throughout the night in areas designated as 'nightlife zones'. Non-residential areas, malls and some business districts are expected to get this tag.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis yesterday agreed to push this proposal for legislative approval. He is expected to get relevant rules amended to facilitate city's nightlife in the budget session starting next month. Mr Fadnavis assured this to Shiv Sena's youth wing chief Aaditya Thackeray.
The idea is to have hotels, medical shops (pharmacies), milk shops, cafeterias and malls open 24X7. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had prepared this plan two years ago for the state government's approval. Mr Fadnavis and Mr Thackeray took the discussion to fruitful level after deliberating it at length.
"BMC's proposal remained pending at the state level because of apathetic approach taken by the Congress-NCP cabinet," Mr Thackeray said in a statement. Two days ago, Mumbai Police Commissioner Rakesh Maria agreed to implement the plan in areas of his jurisdiction.
Mr Maria cited preparedness of his force to prevent any law-and-order situation if establishments remained open in the night. "We had got a letter from the tourism department and we have replied to it that we don't find any problem in letting pubs and bars run in the night, but they should not be in residential areas.
There should be no problems to residents in the night due to these establishments, and proper arrangements should be made to drop the patrons home. In terms of malls, we don't think running a bar or a pub in the mall at night will pose problems to anybody.
But, we will take the decision on case-by-case basis for granting permission," said Rakesh Maria, commissioner of police.
Where?The plan will have non-residential precincts such as Kala Ghoda, Nariman Point, Marine Drive, Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) and Carter Road doing business till wee hours. Commercial complexes like malls, especially those set up on mill lands, will be designated as special entertainment zones. Malls on non-mill land will also fall under this category.
Other than the above options, less expensive joints will be allowed to operate near railways stations and off the highways, so that commuters could use them. This proposal will boost tourism, employment, business and revenue for the government, said Mr Thackeray.
"Nightlife will enhance the city's economy. Commercial activity will increase and offer more jobs in three working shifts. The state will also earn revenue," Mr Thackeray told reporters after meeting the chief minisrer. Sena lawmakers Arvind Sawant and Rahul Shewale, MLA Sunil Prabhu and corporator Makrand Narvekar, too, presented their views before the CM.
Mr Thackeray praised the city police for dismissing the issue of law-and-order while giving approval to the proposal. "The Mumbai Police is able enough to meet any eventuality. The people of this city have faith in our police force, and hence nightlife will not create any issue for the people and the police," he said.
Mr Fadnavis told mid-day that he was positive about the proposal. "I will take this plan forward keeping in mind the concerns faced by peace-loving people. We will amend relevant laws in such a fashion that they will not allow stakeholders to create disturbance for the passive class of people. We will take utmost care in making the system work in a manner which will be acceptable to all."
Cheers all around
The proposal was met with collective approval from the entertainment industry, with the likes of actors Dia Mirza, Ayushmann Khurana, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sushant Singh Rajput lauding the government for the initiative. Musician Gino Banks also felt it would improve the music scene.