Why Mumbai Families Have No Choice But to Sleep on the Beach? | Lokmat Times

[00:00:00]Every night, thousands of families in Mumbai leave their homes and sleep on Versova beach. Not because they want to enjoy the sea, but because their homes have become too hot to live in.

[00:00:10]>> [music] >> Yes, staying inside their homes through the night has become unbearable. Inside those homes, the temperature can stay close to 35° even at night. Can you imagine? Tin roofs trap heat all day and release it through the night. Many houses have little ventilation and long power cuts make things even worse. For these families, their homes feel like ovens. So, they do the only thing they can. They sleep on the beach under the open sky where the sea breeze gives them some relief. The beach feels cooler than their own homes. This is not a choice, this is survival. So, hello, I'm Khatija and you're watching Deep Dive on Lokmat [music] Times. Now, before we move ahead, you know the drill. Do subscribe and press the bell icon for more updates. So, now let me tell you what's happening. Mumbai is currently facing temperatures between 30 and 35° along with very high humidity. The air feels heavy, making it difficult to stay comfortable. And for people living in slums, the situation is much worse.

[00:01:09]Around 37% of Mumbai's population lives in slums. That's nearly 9 million people. Most of them live in houses with tin or asbestos roofs. During the day, these roofs absorb heat. At night, they release the heat back inside the house.

[00:01:24]And as a result, the rooms remain hot even after sunset. So, these homes feel like ovens. People can't sleep properly, children fall sick, elderly people suffer the most. The extreme heat affects their health, their daily lives, and even their ability to work. And then comes the second problem, the most important one, power cuts. Many areas face electricity outages that last for hours. At the same time, more and more families are buying fans and even air conditioners because surviving the heat has become more important than saving money. And as electricity demand reaches record levels, the grid becomes overloaded and blackouts become more common. Suddenly, families have no fans, no ACs, and no relief from the heat.

[00:02:06]They are felt trapped inside a tin-roofed house that feels like an oven. So, what do they do? They walk towards Versova Beach, which is a short distance from their homes. They spread mats on the sand and sleep under the open sky because the breeze is cooler than the air inside the houses. Every morning, when the sun comes up, they return home to continue with their daily lives only to face the same unbearable heat again. Now, let me tell you about the bigger issue, the question of priorities. Right next to these slums, the government is building the Versova-Dahisar Coastal Road. The project is worth around rupees 18,000 crore. The road is expected to reduce travel time for commuters, but here is the question. Around 8,000 families are sleeping on the sand because their homes are too hot to survive in. At the same time, rupees 18,000 crore is being spent on a road. Development is important, better roads are needed, better infrastructure is also necessary.

[00:02:59]But, what about these families? What about the children who cannot sleep inside their own homes because of the heat? [music] Shouldn't making their homes safe and livable also be a priority? The coastal road project began in 2018, and more construction is expected to continue until 2028. In March 2026, the Supreme Court also allowed the cutting of around 45,000 mangroves for the latest phase of the project. So, this is not about stopping development, this is about priorities.

[00:03:26][music] Every year, temperatures are rising. Heat waves are becoming more common, and the people who suffer the most >> [music] >> are often the poorest. Those living in small tin-roofed homes without proper ventilation or reliable electricity.

[00:03:39]Mumbai already has a climate action plan, and nearly 1/3 of the municipal budget is meant for climate-related work. But, activists say many vulnerable communities are still not getting the support they need. Families continue sleeping on beaches because their homes remain too hot at night. So, let me ask you a few question. Is it right to spend 18,000 crore on a road while families are sleeping on beaches just to escape the heat? Is it right to cut around 45,000 mangroves when rising temperatures are already making life harder for the poorest people? Is it right to have a climate action plan on paper if many people still don't feel its impact on the ground? As you see, there are a lot of places where power cuts are happening and this is Mumbai now. So, development is important, roads are important, better infrastructure is important, but so are safe homes. So, are children who deserves a good night sleeps. [music] So, are families who shouldn't have to leave their homes every night just to survive. Now, tell us your views in the comments and thanks for watching Lokmat Times.