If irony had a face, it would have a striking resemblance with Bollywood actress Swara Bhasker. A JNU alumni, Swara who is more popular for her Twitter activism, stood exposed for her double standards yesterday on the issue of development.
Tweeting from the New York Subway Station, she wrote โHello NYC! ๐ค๐โจ Come say hi folks if anyone spots me on the subway!! ๐ฅณ๐โ
Hello NYC! ๐ค๐โจ
Come say hi folks if anyone spots me on the subway!! ๐ฅณ๐ pic.twitter.com/YelUVGdh5G— Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) November 5, 2022
Dressed in black , sheโs seen sitting in the train cabin enjoying the ride in one of the worldโs biggest public transport systems.
It wasnโt too long before the Twitterati exhumed her tweets encouraging her followers to put a stop at metro rail development in Mumbai.
โPls RT and spread the word peeps! #SaveAarey #SaveAareySaveMumbai #SaveAareyForestโ and โCome on #Mumbai !!!! 4pm today!!! Make the time !!!! This is for us all…๐๐ฟ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฟ๐๐พ๐๐พ๐๐พ๐๐พ๐๐พโ was tweeted by her suggesting that the Mumbai Metro project is harmful to the interests of Mumbaikars.
Come on #Mumbai !!!! 4pm today!!! Make the time !!!! This is for us all…๐๐ฟ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฟ๐๐พ๐๐พ๐๐พ๐๐พ๐๐พ pic.twitter.com/neybNBFJC4
— Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) September 13, 2019
It is a fact that Mumbaikars are seething with anger because of the congestion and inadequate infrastructure to deal with the burgeoning population. Experts have warned that the metropolitan city is at the verge of implosion, as traffic woes do not seem to be nearing end. Moreover, known as the lifeline of Mumbai has earned a bad reputation for witnessing stampede-like situations every time people board it at major stops.
The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the government of New York City. Opened on October 27, 1904, the New York City Subway is one of the world’s oldest public transit systems, one of the most-used, and the one with the most stations, with 472 stations in operation. By annual ridership, the New York City Subway is the busiest rapid transit system in both the Western Hemisphere and the Western world, as well as the seventh-busiest rapid transit rail system in the world. On October 29, 2015, more than 6.2 million people rode the subway system, establishing the highest single-day ridership since ridership was regularly monitored in 1985.
It is more than apparent that the Mumbai Metro project will take a lot of burden off the cityโs shoulders. But, vested interests and careless activism are bound to hurt the economy and the pace of development, especially in a country like India which aspires to play a greater role in world affairs in future.