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Mumbai in Brief
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| Mumbai
Demographics | Climate | Geography
| Where To Work | Where To Live
| Where To Shop | Language
| Religion | Festivals
& Holidays | Currency | History
| Caste | Health | Food
| Social Behaviour | Poverty
| Mumbai is the capital of Maharashtra and the economic powerhouse of India and home to around 18 million people. Not only the fastest moving, most affluent, with the highest per capita income, and most industrialized city in India, it also has the county's busiest international airport and seaport, handling nearly 50% of the total foreign trade. It is the stronghold of Indian free enterprise and a major manufacturing centre for everything from cars and bicycles, to pharmaceuticals and petrochemicals. Mumbai is the centre for India’s important textile industry as well as the financial centre and an important base for overseas companies. Mumbai is home to some of the most expensive commercial real estate in the world rivalling that of Tokyo and New York. The Lonely Planet describes Mumbai in the following way: “Mumbai is the glamour of Bollywood cinema, cricket on the maidens on weekends, bhelpuri on the beach at Chowpatty and red double-decker buses. It is also the infamous cages of the red-light district, Asia's largest slums, communalist politics and powerful mafia dons. This tug of war for the city's soul is played out against a Victorian townscape more reminiscent of a prosperous 19th century English industrial city than anything you'd expect to find on the edge of the Arabian Sea.” Mumbai can also be described as a city of contrasts – of some of the wealthiest and poorest people in India; of beautiful old buildings and sprawling slums; of international standard restaurants and sidewalk eating stalls; of one foot in the twenty first century and another way back in time and a city of great pleasure but great frustrations too. Mumbai has experienced tremendous pressure on its infrastructure, owing to the rapid population growth in the last half-century. The municipal corporations are undertaking constructions of 55 flyovers to ease the traffic at key intersections and to improve the connectivity conditions in the city. The Government of India embarked on a radical economic liberalization program in June 1991, leading to the present burgeoning of foreign capital inflows. Participating in expanding business opportunities has meant that many foreign companies, which maintain a physical presence in India, have located in Mumbai as well as other cities such as Delhi, Chennai or Bangalore. Mumbai DemographicsCity Profile – Key Statistics
Cost of Living
Climate
Mumbai
Geography The city developed for 150 years in isolation from its hinterland and still seems to belong in a different world to the huge, predominantly Hindu state of Maharashtra, which encompasses a 500km coastal strip, a portion of the Western Ghats and a significant part of the Deccan plateau. The Western Ghats (literally, steps) start to rise just north of Mumbai and run parallel to the coast. They have an average elevation of 915m and are covered with tropical and temperate evergreen forests and mixed deciduous forest and harbour a rich array of plant and animal life, including 27% of India's flowering plants. The past few years have seen a great amount of movement in the commercial real estate market of Mumbai. Nariman Point, Fort, Cuffe Parade and Churchgate continue to be know as the CBD (Central Business District), however the demand for commercial space in these location have fallen drastically, due to the fact that a large number of companies have relocated to other locations within the city, namely Worli, Lower Parel, Bandra, Kurla Complex, Andheri East and Malad–Goregaon Link Road. These locations are in great demand due to their proximity to the domestic & international airports, availability of large format commercial spaces, availability of Grade ‘A’ buildings with advantages such as good public transportation system, close proximity to housing developments and railway stations The main commercial Areas in Mumbai are:
Housing in Mumbai is generally in apartments and most expatriates choose to live in areas that are convenient traveling distances from work and schools. Mumbai as a city can be divided into three major residential zones:
The main languages of Mumbai are English, Hindu and Marathi. English is widely understood in Mumbai, however the level of spoken efficiency is relatively low outside the business circle. It does help to learn a few Hindi phrases and you will be happily surprised with the smiling response you get from the locals. Eighteen languages are officially recognised by the Indian constitution, but over 1600 minor languages and dialects were listed in the 1991 census. Language is a heavily politicised issue, not least because many state boundaries have been drawn on linguistic lines. Major efforts have been made to promote Hindi as the national language and to gradually phase out English. A stumbling block to this plan is that while Hindi is the predominant language in the north, it bears little relation to the Dravidian languages of the south where very few people speak Hindi. The Indian upper class clings to English as the shared language of the educated elite, championing it as both a badge of their status and as a passport to the world of international business. In truth, only about 3% of Indians have a firm grasp of the language. It is common to hear on radio and TV English mixed in with Hindi and many English words are used instead of the Hindi equivalent due to their common use (e.g. numbers) or because they describe the situation better (e.g. cricketing terms like ‘scoreboard’. Religion seeps into every facet of Indian life. India's major religion, Hinduism, is practiced by approximately 80% of the population. Hinduism has a vast pantheon of gods, a number of holy books and postulates that everyone goes through a series of births or reincarnations that eventually lead to spiritual salvation. With each birth, you can move closer to or further from eventual enlightenment; the deciding factor is your karma. The Hindu religion has three basic practices. They are 1. puja or worship, 2. the cremation of the dead, 3. the rules and regulations of the caste system. Hinduism is not a proselytising religion since you cannot be converted: you're either born a Hindu or you're not. Expatriates should be aware that cows are seen as sacred animals and no beef is eaten by the Hindus. Many Hindus are vegetarian and may or may not include eggs and dairy products in their diets. This is the reason why many restaurants (even some Pizza Huts) clearly show that they are 100% Vegetarian due to the high demand of the vegetarian population. Some Hindus are “non-vegs” which means that they do eat fish and chicken but may exclude them on certain auspicious days or festival days. Buddhism was founded in northern India in about 500 BC, spread rapidly when emperor Ashoka embraced it but was gradually reabsorbed into Hinduism. Today Hindus regard the Buddha as another incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu. There are now only 6.6 million Buddhists in India, but important Buddhist sites in northern India, such as Bodhgaya, Sarnath (near Varanasi) and Kushinagar (near Gorakhpur) remain important sites of pilgrimage. The Jain religion also began life as an attempt to reform Brahminical Hinduism. It emerged at the same time as Buddhism, and for many of the same reasons. The Jains now number only about 4.5 million and are found predominantly in the west and southwest of India. The religion has never found adherents outside India. Jains believe that the universe is infinite and was not created by a deity. They also believe in reincarnation and eventual spiritual salvation by following the path of the Jain prophets. Jains are vegetarians however they do not eat any root vegetables. This includes garlic, onions, potatoes, carrots – an important consideration if entertaining anyone from the Jain religion. There are more than 100 million Muslims in India, making it one of the largest Muslim nations on earth. Islam is the dominant religion in the neighbouring countries of Pakistan and Bangladesh, and there is a Muslim majority in Jammu & Kashmir. Muslim influence in India is particularly strong in the fields of architecture, art and food. Muslims do not eat any pork and all other meat should be Halal. The Sikhs in India number 18 million and are predominantly located in the Punjab. The religion was originally intended to bring together the best of Hinduism and Islam. Its basic tenets are similar to those of Hinduism with the important modification that the Sikhs are opposed to caste distinctions. The holiest shrine of the Sikh religion is the Golden Temple in Amritsar. India has a number of holidays and festivals. The main Mumbai festivals are highlighted below:
Most companies nominate the relevant holidays for managers and staff (they are not always the same days). Most shops will remain open on holidays unless run predominantly by one religion e.g. Christian shop will most likely close at Christmas and Easter, Muslim shop will close in Ramzan. Other Bank Holidays can occur which means that Banks and places like Post Offices will close. Indian School Holidays occur at different times than the international schools. The most popular times of the year for Indian Families to take a break is during the peak of the Summer in May and the other is Diwali to take advantage of the 3 day holiday and a special time to celebrate with Family. Many workers, i.e.. building guards, take time in May to go back to their villages to see their family. This is worth bearing in mind if you are wanting to book any trips within or out of India around these times as flights and accommodation gets very full. There are other times of the year e.g. Bengali School Holidays when tourist spots in India become very crowded. Typically Expatriate Families take holidays during Monsoon to escape the rains and take advantage of the International School Holidays early June to mid August and at Christmas. Other Festivals within India include the following:
Currency Try the www.xe.com currency converter website to see the current conversion rate for your currency
Bombay soon developed as a trading port thanks to its fine harbour and the number of merchants who were attracted from other parts of India by the British promise of religious freedom and land grants. Migrants included sizeable communities of Parsis and Gujaratis, and south Indian Hindus fleeing Portuguese persecution in Goa. Their arrival, and that of later immigrant groups, laid the basis for Bombay's celebrated multicultural society. Within 20 years, the presidency of the East India Company was transferred to Bombay from Surat, and the town soon became the trading headquarters for the whole west coast of India. Bombay's fort was built in the 1720s, and soon after land reclamation projects began the century-long process of joining the seven islands into a single land mass. Although Bombay grew steadily during the 18th century, it remained isolated from its hinterland until the British defeated the Marathas and annexed substantial portions of Western India in 1818. Growth was spurred by the arrival of steam ships and the construction of the first railway in Asia from Bombay to Thane in 1853. Cotton mills were built in the city the following year, and the American Civil War - which temporarily dried up Britain's supply of cotton - sparked Bombay's cotton boom. The fort walls were dismantled in 1864 and the city embarked on a major building spree as it sought to construct a civic townscape commensurate with its new found wealth. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 and the massive expansion of Bombay's docks cemented the city's future as India's primary port. Bombay played a formative role in the struggle for Independence, hosting the first Indian National Congress in 1885 and the launch of the 'Quit India' campaign in 1942. After Independence the city became capital of the Bombay Presidency but this was divided on linguistic grounds into Maharashtra and Gujarat in 1960. Since then, the huge number of rural (especially Maharashtran) migrants attracted by Bombay's commercial success has strained the city's infrastructure and altered its demographics. It gave rise to a pro-Marathi right-wing regionalist movement, spearheaded by the Shiv Sena municipal government, which shook the city's multicultural foundations by discriminating against non-Maharashtrans and Muslims. This increased communalist tensions, which erupted in murderous post-Ayodhya riots in 1992 and was followed by 13 bomb blasts that ripped through the city on a single day in March 1993. Shiv Sainaks were implicated in the former while the city's mafia got blamed for the latter - though the dividing line between the political establishment and organised crime has been hard to pinpoint. In 1996 the Shiv Sena officially renamed the city Mumbai. The change of name led to linguistic confusion, and signalled the intention of the Maharashtra state government to assert the city's Marathi identity, despite the strength and success of its multicultural foundations. The Shiv Sena and their leader, Bal Thackeray (noted for his stated admiration of Adolf Hitler), ruled the state of Maharashtra behind the scenes until October 1999, when the administration which had protected them lost to the Congress Party in assembly elections. Attempts by the state's new political leaders to prosecute Thackeray in July 2000 for his alleged involvement in the 1992 anti-Muslim riots led to his supporters effectively shutting Mumbai down for several days through violent protests - the charges against this still influential person were then soon withdrawn. Mumbai leapt into the new millennium determined to become the most populous city in the world by 2020, when it might hold as many as 28.5 million people. This upcoming stature is, however, of little comfort to the 50% of the city's inhabitants who presently still live without water or electricity. Nothing demonstrates Mumbai's deteriorating environment better than a recent report which claims just breathing the air in Mumbai is equivalent to smoking 20 cigarettes a day. It's hoped that the satellite city of New Bombay, which is taking shape on the mainland, will relieve some of the pressures on the urban environment. What’s in a name: The city of Bombay was officially renamed Mumbai in January 1996. Many locals are clearly in favour of the name change since it has been part of the democratically elective Shiv Sena’s agenda for decades. They believe that the new name reclaims the heritage and signifies its emergence from a colonial past. Others see the name change as an assertion of the Maratha identity (Mumbai is the Marathi name for the city) that is inappropriate in a city that is home to people from all over India. The Indian constitution sets out the resolve to eradicate the age-old system of caste, which has denied for centuries the opportunity of social advancement to the lowest stratum of the system, the “Untouchables” (or Harijans, “children of God” as Gandhi names them – the term Dalit is now increasingly used.) Considerable steps were taken after independence to actively promote the education and welfare of these depressed classes, most notably through the system of positive discrimination – by assigning a quota of up to 50 percent of places in universities and professional institutions to be the “scheduled” castes. Old traditions die hard however, and despite these efforts and those of individuals such as Gandhi, Ambedkar, and others, prejudice, mainly within the social sphere, remains. The castes are:
General sanitary and hygiene conditions in India including Mumbai are probably not up to the same standard than you are used to at home. However, if you take simple precautions, such as washing your hands frequently (particularly before eating) and ensuring that anything you eat or drink has been properly washed and prepared, your chances of experiencing health problems will be greatly reduced. It is recommended that regular inoculations for typhoid (every three years) be maintained and it is advisable to receive a Hepatitis A vaccine before you arrive. Anti-malarial treatment is not necessary unless travelling to more rural areas although it is advisable to take precautions not be bitten by mosquitoes even in the developed cities. Cholera, dengue fever, dysentery, hepatitis, malaria and typhoid are regularly reported in the city, however expatriates seldom seem to be affected by these conditions and may only experience the odd case of diarrhoea. Mumbai is however highly polluted and respiratory ailments may become a problem. Health facilities in Mumbai are among the best in India. The top hospitals in the city offer a range of medical and health services to suit emergency needs and general health concerns. All provide both in-patient and outpatient services. Food For the meat eaters, meat, including beef, is to be found. However don’t expect to find your Big Mac in McDonald’s as no beef is available in their outlets but you could opt for the chicken burger. India has many delicious tropical fruits. Some are highly seasonal (e.g. mangoes, pineapples and lychees), while others (e.g. bananas, grapes, oranges) are available throughout the year. It is safe to eat the ones you can wash and peel or if you are in your own home you can soak them in potassium permanganate and rinse them off with clean water. Bottled carbonated drinks such as Coke, Sprite, Pepsi and Marinda are universally available. Several brands of fruit juices in Tetra packs or cartons are also available. Indian beers and local wines and spirits are also available as are imported wines and spirits, however the duties on imported goods push the prices up quite dramatically. Wine is not widely drunk in India and many retail outlets do not store it well. It is not unusual to have a bottle of wine handed over the counter which is warm to the touch! Indian wines are developing but for regular wine drinkers they are a poor standard to export quality wine countries. Wines in hotels can be very expensive for this reason. Milk is available fresh although the quality and consistency of pasteurization is not guaranteed. This is why many hotels serve milk boiled (served hot) or milk in the home is bought in long life tetra packs in the local markets which is safe to drink cold. Social
Behaviour
Poverty
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