The Hindu Business Line : A shattered monsoon dream

One reached Alibag and found there was no beach that travel books talk of. One walked a patch of black sand with its edges embroidered with stones to prevent the black waves from breaking in.

ON Saturday, one set out for Alibag with a planned dream to spend two days on its beaches. One trilled at the thought of catching the rains on the beaches off the Konkan coast ahead of Mumbaikars awaiting it in Mumbai, count waves on one's fingers and wash a far-off city out of the system. On the way, one halted at an eatery to have tasty vada pav with misal, kothmir wadi and tea. That proved to be the best moment of the Saturday journey. The vagrant, cloudy sky over Alibag in Raigad district did not offer a consolation raindrop.

In slightly over two hours, one reached Alibag and found there was no beach that travel books talk of. One walked a patch of black sand with its edges embroidered with black stones to prevent the black waves from breaking in. A lone family was around trying to humour the sea with its low waves. Maybe during monsoon the wind churns the sea a dirty brown or black though that does not seem to happen in the seas off Kerala or Goa. From there one drove to Kihim, a strung out beachfront like a clothesline, as dark brown or black as Alibag.

Before setting out one was informed of the white sands of Kihim though one did not spot any. Builders might have pilfered the white sands for building the unfriendly looking housing societies in Navi Mumbai and The Indian Express had recently exposed the racket. Walking along the Kihim beach, one did not sight a single bird. Broken glass and plastic lay hidden in the beach sands; there were no sea shells to add to one's personal collection of sea shells picked up from various beaches; human excreta lay discreetly hidden and one had to make sharp detours to avoid them; a few bungalows sat facing the sea behind a screen of coconut palms. A local resident parked his cycle near a bungalow, walked on to the beach, defecated, washed himself in the waves and went back to his cycle. That was enough to bid good-bye to Kihim and make one's way to Mandwa, a resting place for the rich of Mumbai.

A maroon Mercedes stood outside one of the homes fronting the beach, which was empty. Fishermen had pulled up their boats on the beach and covered them with blue plastic sheets as it is off-season for fishing. It was about two in the afternoon when one started back home, disappointed with the way the day had gone. Hard facts had done away with the dreams.

The Cidco-planned Navi Mumbai, stretching from Panvel to Vashi, with its awesome housing colonies on the fringes of mangrove swamps, has a spectral touch. Clean, wide roads to service the car owners residing in the housing societies have done away with the vegetation. There are no slums to taunt one's conscience but it is doubtful if it will remain that way as the State Government talks of building a modern airport in the area, which will need construction workers. Fancy buildings are being thought up by builders and some Government officials have been caught cutting down the mangroves to put up luxury homes. The railway stations are neat and covered with the top rented out as commercial space, unlike the open platforms on the Western and Central Railway. Having been used to their rather dirty platforms, it took some time for me to get used to the clinical beauty of Navi Mumbai.

Navi Mumbai bears the stylistic impression of economic reforms while its first cousin warty, old Mumbai wears the scars of years of socialistic planning. The difference between old Mumbai and Navi Mumbai is obvious and in about 10 years, Navi Mumbai could nibble at the coastlands along Alibag. For the residents in Navi Mumbai, Alibag could become a resting place as they build farmhouses with a passion.

At Alibag, one can see hotels touching the sea, violating environment laws and that could become common practice. To approach the beaches one has to drive through crowded lanes which could in the future lead to traffic jams as there is no way the lanes can be broadened. From Vashi one took a train in the evening to Andheri and enjoyed the long run over the creek, which drops into the Arabian Sea. But as the train hit Mankhurd and Chembur one started breathing the familiar and tired air of Mumbai. On the way, one wondered how tourist journals could find apple-pie virtues in Alibag, Kihim and Mandwa, when builders and tourists have nearly killed the spots. It's the same with Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, Hawa Mahal in Jaipur and many other tourist spots. When I reached home, my neighbour inquired, "Is not Alibag beautiful?" I did not tell him of my resolve of never ever visiting a tourist spot.

More Stories on : Tourism | Reflections | Climate & Weather

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
e-cinema arrives to fight film piracy — Adlabs' digital tech fine-tunes distribution

Discovery to Cash in...

Archies celebrates Father's Day with Radio Mirchi

Stage set for Nandi festival in Hyderabad

ESPN-Star bags global rights to telecast Asia Cup

A shattered monsoon dream

Relic of past glory