Mumbai
Mumbai, also known as Bombay, is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the list of cities in [India by population|most populous city proper] of India with an estimated population of 12.5 million. Mumbai is the centre of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, which is among the most populous metropolitan areas in the world with a population of over 23 million. Mumbai lies on the Konkan coast on the west coast of India and has a deep natural harbour. In 2008, Mumbai was named a alpha world city. Mumbai has the highest number of billionaires out of any city in Asia.
The seven islands that constitute Mumbai were earlier home to communities of Marathi language-speaking Koli people. For centuries, the seven islands of Bombay were under the control of successive indigenous rulers before being ceded to the Portuguese Empire, and subsequently to the East India Company in 1661, as part of the dowry of Catherine of Braganza in her marriage to Charles II of England. Beginning in 1782, Mumbai was reshaped by the Hornby Vellard project, which undertook reclamation of the area between the seven islands from the Arabian Sea. Along with the construction of major roads and railways, the reclamation project, completed in 1845, transformed Mumbai into a major seaport on the Arabian Sea. Mumbai in the 19th century was characterised by economic and educational development. During the early 20th century, it became a strong base for the Indian independence movement. Upon India's independence in 1947, the city was incorporated into Bombay State. In 1960, following the Samyukta [Maharashtra Movement], a new state of Maharashtra was created with Mumbai as the capital.
Mumbai is the financial, commercial, and entertainment capital of India. Mumbai is often compared to New York City, and is home to the Bombay Stock Exchange, situated on Dalal Street. It is also one of the world's top ten centres of commerce in terms of global financial flow, generating 6.16% of India's GDP, and accounting for 25% of the nation's industrial output, 70% of maritime trade in India, and 70% of capital transactions to India's economy. The city houses important financial institutions and the corporate Indian companies headquartered in Mumbai|headquarters] of numerous Indian companies and multinational corporations. The city is also home to some of India's premier scientific and nuclear institutes and the Hindi and Marathi film industries. Mumbai's business opportunities attract migrants from all over India.
Etymology
The name Mumbai originated from Mumbā or Mahā-Ambā—the name of the patron Hindu goddess Mumbadevi of the native Koli community—and from ā'ī, meaning "mother" in Marathi. By some accounts, the Koli community of Kathiawar and Central Gujarat introduced their deity Mumba from Kathiawar, where her worship continues to this day. However, other sources disagree.The oldest known names for the city are Kakamuchee and Galajunkja; these are sometimes still used. Portuguese writer Gaspar Correia recorded the name "Bombaim" after 1512 in his Lendas da Índia. Some Anglophone authors have suggested this came from a supposed Galician-Portuguese phrase bom baim, "good little bay", with no scientific basis. In 1516, Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa used the name Tana-Maiambu: Tana appears to refer to the adjoining town of Thane and Maiambu to Mumbadevi. The form Bombaim is still commonly used in Portuguese. Many variant names were recorded in the 16th and the 17th centuries. After the English gained possession of the city in the 17th century, the Portuguese name was anglicised to Bombay. Ali Muhammad Khan, imperial dewan or revenue minister of the Gujarat province, in the Mirat-i Ahmedi called the city Manbai.
The French traveller Louis Rousselet, who visited in 1863 and 1868, stated in 1877 that "Etymologists have wrongly derived this name from the Portuguese Bôa Bahia, or, not knowing that the tutelar goddess of this island has been, from remote antiquity, Bomba, or Mumba Devi, and that she still... possesses a temple". British officer and scholar John Briggs concurred that the name Bombay was a corruption of "Mumby", for a temple to Mumba Devi.
By the late 20th century, the city was called Mumbai or Mambai in Marathi, Konkani, Gujarati, Kannada and Sindhi, and Bambai in Hindi. The Government of India officially changed the English name to Mumbai in November 1995. This came at the insistence of the Marathi nationalist Shiv Sena party, which had just won the Maharashtra state elections, and mirrored similar name changes across India. Shiv Sena argued that the name 'Bombay' echoed British colonial rule. While Mumbai is still called Bombay by some residents and by some Indians from other regions, mention of the city by a name other than Mumbai has become controversial.
People from Mumbai
A resident of Mumbai is called Mumbaikar in Marathi, in which the suffix -kar means a 'resident of'. The term had been in use for quite some time, but it gained popularity after the official name change to Mumbai. Older terms such as Bombayite are used infrequently.History
Early history
Mumbai is built on what was once an archipelago of seven islands: Isle of Bombay, Parel, Mazagaon, Mahim, Colaba, Worli, and Old Woman's Island. Pleistocene sediments found along the coast near Kandivali suggest that the islands were inhabited since the South Asian Stone Age. Perhaps at the beginning of the Common Era, they were occupied by the Koli fishing community.In the 3rd century BCE, the islands formed part of the Maurya Empire, ruled by the Buddhist emperor Ashoka. The Kanheri Caves in Borivali were excavated in the first century CE, and served as a centre of Buddhism in Western India. The city was known as Heptanesia to the Greek geographer Ptolemy in 150 CE. The Mahakali Caves in Andheri were cut out between the 1st century BCE and the 6th century CE.
Between the 2nd century BCE and 9th century CE, the islands came under the control of successive indigenous dynasties: Satavahanas, Western Satraps, Abhira, Vakataka, Kalachuris, Konkan Mauryas, Chalukyas and Rashtrakutas, before being ruled by the Shilaharas from 810 to 1260. Some of the oldest edifices in the city are the Jogeshwari Caves, Elephanta Caves, Walkeshwar Temple, and Banganga Tank.
File:Hajiali.jpg|thumb|The Haji Ali Dargah was built in 1431, when Mumbai was under the rule of the Gujarat Sultanate.
King Bhimdev founded his kingdom in the region in the late 13th century and established his capital in Mahikawati. The Pathare Prabhus, among the earliest known settlers of the city, were brought to Mahikawati from Saurashtra in Gujarat around 1298 by Bhimdev. The Delhi Sultanate annexed the islands in 1347–48 and controlled it until 1407. During this time, the islands were administered by the Muslim Governors of Gujarat, appointed by the Delhi Sultanate. The islands were later governed by the independent Gujarat Sultanate, established in 1407. As a result, numerous mosques were built, including the Haji Ali Dargah in Worli. Erected in 1431, the structure pays homage to the Muslim saint, Haji Ali. From 1429 to 1431, the islands were a source of contention between the Gujarat Sultanate and the Bahmani Sultanate of Deccan. In 1493, Bahadur Khan Gilani of the Bahmani Sultanate attempted to conquer the islands but was defeated.
Portuguese and British rule
Apprehensive of the power of the Mughal emperor Humayun, Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat was obliged to sign the Bassein |Treaty of Bassein] with the Portuguese Empire on 23 December 1534. According to the treaty, the Seven Islands of Bombay, the nearby strategic town of Bassein and its dependencies were offered to the Portuguese. The territories were surrendered on 25 October 1535.The Portuguese assisted their Roman Catholic religious orders in Bombay. They called the islands by various names, taking the written form Bombaim. The islands were leased to Portuguese officers during their regime. The Portuguese Franciscans and Jesuits built churches in the city, such as the St. Michael's Church at Mahim, St. John the Baptist Church at Andheri, St. Andrew's Church at Bandra, and Gloria Church at Byculla. They also built fortifications like the Bombay Castle, Castella de Aguada, and Madh Fort. The English vied with the Portuguese hegemony over Mumbai, recognising its strategic natural harbour and its isolation from land attacks. By the middle of the 17th century, the Dutch Empire forced the English to acquire a station in western India. On 11 May 1661, the marriage treaty of Charles II of England and Catherine of Braganza, daughter of King John IV of Portugal, gave most of the islands to the English Empire, as part of Catherine's dowry to Charles.
In accordance with the Royal Charter of 27 March 1668, England leased these islands to the English East India Company in 1668 for a sum of £10 per annum. The population quickly rose from 10,000 in 1661 to 60,000 in 1675. The islands were subsequently attacked by Yakut Khan, the Muslim Koli admiral of the Mughal Empire, in October 1672, Rickloffe van Goen, the Governor-General of Dutch India on 20 February 1673, and Siddi admiral Sambal on 10 October 1673.
In 1687, the English East India Company transferred its headquarters from Surat to Mumbai. The city eventually became the headquarters of the Bombay Presidency. The islands again suffered incursions from Yakut Khan in 1689–90. The Portuguese presence ended when the Marathas under Peshwa Baji Rao I captured Salsette in 1737, and Bassein in 1739.
By the middle of the 18th century, Mumbai expanded into a major trading town, receiving a huge influx of migrants from across India. The British occupied Salsette on 28 December 1774. With the Treaty of Surat, the British gained control of Salsette and Bassein, resulting in the First Anglo-Maratha War. The British secured Salsette from the Marathas through the Treaty of Purandar , and later through the Treaty of Salbai, signed to settle the outcome of the First Anglo-Maratha War.
From 1782 onwards, the city was reshaped with large-scale civil engineering projects to merge the seven islands of Bombay into one by means of a causeway, the Hornby Vellard, completed by 1784. In 1817, the British East India Company under Mountstuart Elphinstone defeated Baji Rao II, the last of the Maratha Peshwa in the Battle of Khadki. This brought almost the whole of the Deccan Plateau under British suzerainty and the Bombay Presidency. The success of the campaign marked the end of attacks by native powers.
On 16 April 1853, India's first passenger railway line was established, connecting Mumbai to the neighbouring town of Thana. During the American Civil War, the city became the world's chief cotton-trading market, resulting in an economic boom.
The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 transformed Mumbai into one of the largest seaports on the Arabian Sea. In September 1896, Mumbai was hit by a bubonic plague epidemic with a death toll of some 1,900 per week. About 850,000 people fled Mumbai, harming the textile industry. The Indian independence movement fostered the Quit India Movement in 1942 and the Royal [Indian Navy mutiny] in 1946.
Independent India
After India's independence in 1947, the Bombay Presidency was restructured into Bombay State. The area increased when several erstwhile princely states were integrated into the state. Subsequently, the city became the capital of Bombay State. In April 1950, municipal limits of Mumbai were expanded by merging the Mumbai suburban district and Mumbai City to form the Greater Mumbai Municipal Corporation.The Samyukta Maharashtra movement to create a separate Maharashtra state including Mumbai was at its height in the 1950s. In the 1955 Lok Sabha discussions, the Congress party demanded that the city be made an autonomous city-state. The States Reorganisation Committee recommended a bilingual state for Maharashtra–Gujarat with Mumbai as its capital in its 1955 report. Bombay Citizens' Committee, an advocacy group of leading Gujarati industrialists, lobbied for independent status.
Following protests in which 105 people died in clashes with the police, Bombay State was reorganised on linguistic lines on 1 May 1960. Gujarati-speaking areas were partitioned into the state of Gujarat. Maharashtra State with Mumbai as its capital was formed with the merger of Marathi-speaking areas of Bombay State, eight districts from Central Provinces and Berar, five districts from Hyderabad State, and numerous princely states. As a memorial to the martyrs of the Samyukta Maharashtra movement, Flora Fountain was renamed as Hutatma Chowk and a memorial was erected.
File:Hutatma Chowk.jpg|thumb|upright=0.6|The Hutatma Chowk memorial honours the martyrs of the Samyukta Maharashtra movement.|alt=A stone statue of torch-bearers as seen at night. A fountain with a white base is in the background
The following decades saw a massive expansion of the city and its suburbs. In the late 1960s, Nariman Point and Cuffe Parade were reclaimed and developed. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority was established on 26 January 1975 by the Government of Maharashtra to co-ordinate development in the Mumbai metropolitan region. In August 1979, a sister township of New Mumbai was founded by the City and Industrial Development Corporation across the Thane and Raigad districts to manage Mumbai's population. The textile industry largely disappeared after the 1982 Great Bombay Textile Strike, involving nearly 250,000 workers in more than 50 textile mills. Mumbai's defunct cotton mills have since become the focus of intense redevelopment. Industrial development began with a focus on the petrochemical, electronic, and automotive sectors. In 1954 Hindustan Petroleum commissioned Mumbai Refinery at Trombay and BPCL Refinery.
The Jawaharlal Nehru Port, which handles 55–60% of India's containerised cargo, was commissioned on 26 May 1989 across the creek at Nhava Sheva to de-congest Mumbai Harbour and to serve as a hub port for the city. The geographical limits of Greater Mumbai were coextensive with its municipal limits. On 1 October 1990, the Greater Mumbai district was bifurcated to form two revenue districts namely, Mumbai City and Mumbai Suburban, though they continued to be administered by the same Municipal Administration.
The years from 1990 to 2010 saw an increase in violence and terrorism. Following the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, the city was rocked by the Hindu-Muslim riots of 1992–93 in which more than 1,000 people were killed. In March 1993, a series of 13 coordinated bombings at city landmarks by Islamic extremists and the Mumbai underworld resulted in 257 deaths and over 700 injuries. In 2006, 209 people were killed and over 700 injured when seven bombs exploded on the city's commuter trains. In 2008, a series of ten coordinated attacks by armed terrorists for three days resulted in 173 deaths, 308 injuries, and severe damage to several heritage landmarks and prestigious hotels. The three coordinated bomb explosions in July 2011 that occurred at the Opera house, Zaveri Bazaar and Dadar were the latest in the series of terrorist attacks in Mumbai which resulted in 26 deaths and 130 injuries.
Mumbai is the commercial capital of India and a global financial hub. It is the home of India's main financial services companies and a focus for infrastructure development and private investment. It has become South Asia's largest city and home of the world's most prolific film industry.
Geography
Mumbai is on a narrow peninsula between the Arabian Sea, Thane Creek, and Vasai Creek. Its suburban district occupies most of the island. Navi Mumbai is east of Thane Creek, and Thane is north of Vasai Creek. Mumbai consists of two distinct regions: Mumbai City district and Mumbai Suburban district, separate revenue districts of Maharashtra. The city district-region is commonly called the "Island City" or South Mumbai. The total area of Mumbai is. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region which includes portions of Thane, Palghar and Raigad districts in addition to Greater Mumbai, covers an area of.Mumbai lies at the mouth of the Ulhas River on the western coast of India, in the coastal region known as the Konkan. It sits on Salsette Island, which it partially shares with the Thane district. Mumbai is bounded by the Arabian Sea to the west. Many parts of the city lie just above sea level, with elevations ranging from. The city has an average elevation of. Northern Mumbai is hilly, and the highest point in the city is at Salsette in the Powai–Kanheri ranges. The Sanjay Gandhi National Park is situated partly in the Mumbai suburban district and partly in the Thane district, covering an area of.
Apart from the Bhatsa Dam, six major lakes supply water to the city: Vihar Lake, Lower Vaitarna, Upper Vaitarna, Tulsi Lake, Tansa, and Powai Lake. Tulsi Lake and Vihar Lake are located within the city's limits in Borivali National Park. The supply from Powai Lake, also within the city limits, is used only for agricultural and industrial purposes. The coastline is indented with creeks and bays, stretching from the Thane creek in the east to Madh Marve on the western front. The eastern coast of Salsette Island is covered with biodiverse mangrove swamps, while the western coast is mostly sandy and rocky.
Soil cover in the city region is predominantly sandy. In the suburbs, the soil cover is largely alluvial and loamy. The underlying rock is black Deccan basalt, dating to the late Cretaceous and early Eocene eras. Mumbai sits on a seismically active zone with 23 fault lines. The area is a Seismic Zone III region, which means an earthquake of up to magnitude 6.5 on the Richter magnitude scale could occur.
Climate
Mumbai has an extreme tropical wet and dry climate under the Köppen climate classification. However, the central and northern suburbs experience a tropical monsoon climate with heavier rainfall during the wet season. Mumbai has a nearly rainless stretch from October to May, with its most intense rainfall during July. A cooler season from December to February is followed by a hotter season from March to May. The period from June to the end of September constitutes the southwest monsoon season.The maximum annual rainfall ever recorded was for 1954. The most rainfall recorded in a single day was on floods of 2005|26 July 2005]. The average total annual rainfall is for the Island City and for the suburbs.
The average annual temperature is, and the average annual precipitation is. In the Island City, the average maximum temperature is, while the average minimum temperature is. In the suburbs, the daily mean maximum temperature range from to, and the daily mean minimum temperature ranges from to. The record high is set on 14 April 1952, and the record low was, set on 27 January 1962.
Tropical cyclones are rare in the city. The worst cyclone to strike the city was on 23 November 1948, with gusts reaching in Juhu, resulting in 38 deaths and 47 people missing.
Mumbai is prone to monsoon floods, exacerbated by climate change. According to the World Bank, unplanned drainage systems and informal settlements are key drivers of Mumbai's frequent floods. Flooding occurs frequently, with the 2005 Mumbai floods causing 500-1000 deaths and financial losses of 1.2 billion. To reduce flooding in Mumbai, the Maharashtra government adopted a flood mitigation plan that included restructuring the drainage system, restoring the Mithi River, and re-establishing informal settlements.
Air pollution
is a major issue in Mumbai. According to the 2016 World Health Organization Global Urban Ambient Air Pollution Database, the annual average PM2.5 concentration in 2013 was 63 μg/m3, which was 6.3 times higher than that recommended by the WHO Air Quality Guideline for annual mean PM2.5. The Central Pollution Control Board for the Government of India and the Consulate General of the United States, Mumbai monitor and publicly share real-time air quality data. In December 2019, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, in partnership with the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis, launched the Aerosol and Air Quality Research Facility to study air pollution in Mumbai, among other Indian cities.Economy
Mumbai, sometimes described as the "New York City of India", is the country's most populous city and its financial and commercial capital, generating 6.16% of the total GDP. It generates 19.8% of the GDP of Maharashtra. It serves as an economic hub of India: as of 2006, Mumbai contributed 10% of the nation's factory employment, 25% of industrial output, 33% of income tax collections, 60% of customs duty collections, 20% of central excise tax collections, 40% of foreign trade, and in corporate taxes. Along with the rest of India, Mumbai has witnessed an economic boom since the liberalisation of 1991, the finance boom in the mid-nineties, and the information technology, export, services, and outsourcing boom in the 2000s.Estimates of the 2017–18 economy of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region ranged from $368 billion to $400billion, making it either the most or second most-productive metro area of India. Many of India's conglomerates, and five of the Fortune Global 500 companies are based in Mumbai. This is facilitated by the presence of the Reserve Bank of India, the Bombay Stock Exchange, the National Stock Exchange of India, and financial sector regulators such as the Securities and Exchange Board of India.
Until the 1970s, Mumbai owed its prosperity largely to textile mills and seaport, but the local economy has since then diversified to include finance, engineering, diamond-polishing, healthcare, and information technology.
The key sectors contributing to the city's economy are: finance, gems & jewellery, leather processing, IT and ITES, textiles, petrochemical, electronics manufacturing, automobiles, and entertainment. Nariman Point and Bandra Kurla Complex are Mumbai's major financial centres.
State and central government employees comprise much of the city's workforce. Mumbai has a large unskilled and semi-skilled self-employed population, who earn their livelihood as hawkers, taxi drivers, mechanics, and other blue collar professions. The port and shipping industry is well established: Mumbai Port is one of India's oldest and most significant ports. Dharavi, in central Mumbai, has a large recycling industry, processing the city's recyclable waste; the district has some 15,000 single-room factories.
By 2019, Mumbai was among the world's top ten cities by number of billionaires. With a total wealth of around $960 billion, it is the wealthiest Indian city and one of the richest cities in the world., the Globalization and World Cities Research Network has ranked Mumbai as an "alpha world city", third in its categories of Global cities. Mumbai is the third most expensive office market in the world, and has been ranked among the fastest cities in the country for business startup.
Poverty, inequality, and the cost of living
Mumbai is one of the most unequal cities in the world. 41.8% of the city's population live in urban slums, though slums occupy just around 7% of the city's total land area. It suffers from poverty and unemployment. With available land at a premium, Mumbai residents often endure cramped housing, far from workplaces, with long commutes on crowded mass transits or roads clogged with traffic. Many live close to bus or train stations, although suburban residents spend a significant amount of time commuting southward to the central commercial district. Mumbai's overall per capita residential area is 8.3 square metres, and in the city's slums, it is 2.73 square metres.According to the World Bank in 2010, the median income was ₹20,000 while the average was ₹40,000. By 2019, the overall average salary in Mumbai was ₹45,000. Meanwhile, the median rental cost of a one-bedroom apartment in Mumbai proper is around ₹30,000. Much of the city's population lives paycheck to paycheck.
Government and politics
Civic administration
Greater Mumbai, an area of, consisting of the Mumbai City and Mumbai Suburban districts, extends from Colaba in the south, to Mulund and Dahisar in the north, and Mankhurd in the east. Its population as per the 2011 census was 12,442,373.It is administered by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation , formerly known as the Bombay Municipal Corporation. The BMC is in charge of the civic and infrastructure needs of the metropolis. The mayor, who serves for a term of years, is chosen through an indirect election by the councillors from among themselves.
The municipal commissioner is the chief executive officer and head of the executive arm of the municipal corporation. All executive powers are vested in the municipal commissioner, who is an Indian Administrative Service officer appointed by the state government. The commissioner is responsible for executing policies. The commissioner is appointed for a fixed term. The powers of the commissioner are those provided by statute and those delegated by the corporation or the standing committee.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation was ranked 9th out of 21 cities for best governance & administrative practices in India in 2014, scoring 3.5 out of 10, compared to the national average of 3.3.
File:Mumbai 03-2016 41 Bombay High Court.jpg|thumb|left|The Bombay High Court exercises jurisdiction over Maharashtra, Goa, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.|alt=A brown building with a central tower and sloping roofs surrounded by trees. A grassy ground and a coconut tree are in front of it.
The Mumbai Police is headed by a police commissioner, who is an Indian Police Service officer. The Mumbai Police is a division of the Maharashtra Police, under the state Home Ministry. The city is divided into seven police zones and seventeen traffic police zones, each headed by a deputy commissioner of police. The Mumbai Traffic Police is a semi-autonomous body under the Mumbai Police. The Mumbai Fire Brigade, which is under the jurisdiction of the municipal corporation, is headed by the chief fire officer, who is assisted by four deputy chief fire officers and six divisional officers. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority is responsible for infrastructure development and planning of Mumbai Metropolitan Region.
Mumbai is the seat of the Bombay High Court, which exercises jurisdiction over the states of Maharashtra and Goa, and the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Mumbai also has two lower courts, the Court of Small Causes for civil matters, and the Sessions Court for criminal cases. Mumbai also has a special Terrorist and Disruptive Activities court for people accused of conspiring and abetting acts of terrorism in the city.
National politics
Mumbai was the birthplace of the Indian National Congress. Its first session was held in Mumbai from 28 to 31 December 1885. The city played host to the Indian National Congress six times during its first 50 years, and was a base for the Indian independence movement during the 20th century.The 1960s saw the rise of regionalist politics, with the formation of the Shiv Sena on 19 June 1966, under the leadership of Bal Thackeray out of resentment about the marginalisation of Marathi people in Mumbai. Shiv Sena switched from 'Marathi Cause' to a larger 'Hindutva Cause' in 1985 and joined hands with Bhartiya Janata Party that year. The Congress had dominated the politics of Mumbai from independence until the early 1980s, when the Shiv Sena won the 1985 municipal elections.
In 1989, the Bharatiya Janata Party, a major national political party, forged an electoral alliance with the Shiv Sena to dislodge the Congress in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly elections. In 1999, several members left the Congress to form the Nationalist Congress Party but later allied with the Congress to form the Democratic Front. Other parties such as Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen and several independent candidates contest elections in the city.
In the Indian national elections held every five years, Mumbai is represented by six parliamentary constituencies: North |North], North West |North West], North East |North East], North Central |North Central], South Central |South Central], and South. A member of parliament to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, is elected from each of the parliamentary constituencies. In the 2019 national election, all six parliamentary constituencies were won by the BJP and Shiv Sena in alliance, each winning three seats.
In the Maharashtra state assembly elections held every five years, Mumbai is represented by 36 assembly constituencies. A member of the legislative assembly to the Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha is elected from each of the assembly constituencies. In the 2019 [Maharashtra Legislative Assembly election|2019 state assembly election], out of the 36 constituencies, 16 were won by the BJP, 11 by the Shiv Sena, 6 by the Congress, 2 by the NCP and one by an independent.
Elections are held every five years to elect corporators to power in the MCGM. The Corporation comprises 227 directly elected Councillors representing the 24 municipal wards, five nominated Councillors with knowledge of municipal administration, and a ceremonial mayor. In the 2012 municipal corporation elections, out of the 227 seats, the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance secured 107 seats, holding power with the support of independents in the MCGM, while the Congress-NCP alliance bagged 64 seats. The tenure of the mayor, deputy mayor, and municipal commissioner is years.
Transport
Public transport
Public transport systems include the Mumbai Suburban Railway, Monorail, Metro, Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport buses, black-and-yellow meter taxis, auto rickshaws and ferries. Suburban railway and BEST bus services together accounted for about 88% of the passenger traffic in 2008. Auto rickshaws are allowed to operate only in suburban areas, while taxis are allowed to operate throughout the city, but work mostly in the central district, South Mumbai. Taxis and the lower-cost auto rickshaws are required to run on compressed natural gas,Railways
The Mumbai Suburban Railway, colloquially referred to as "Locals", forms the backbone of the city's transport system. It is operated by the Central Railway and Western Railway zones of the Indian Railways. Mumbai's suburban rail systems carried 6.3 million passengers every day in 2007. Trains are overcrowded during peak hours, with twelve-car trains of rated capacity 1,700 passengers, actually carrying around 4,500 passengers at peak hours. The Mumbai rail network is spread at an expanse of. 191 rakes of 12 car and 15 car composition are utilised to run a total of 2,226 train services in the city.The Mumbai Monorail and Mumbai Metro are being extended in phases to relieve the overcrowding on the existing network. The Monorail opened in early February 2014. The first line of the Mumbai Metro opened in June 2014.
Mumbai is the headquarters of two zones of the Indian Railways: the Central Railway headquartered at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, and the Western Railway headquartered at Churchgate. Mumbai is also well connected to most parts of India by the Indian Railways. Long-distance trains depart from Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Dadar, Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, Mumbai Central, Bandra Terminus, Andheri and Borivali.
Bus
Mumbai's bus services carried over 5.5 million passengers per day in 2008, dropping to 2.8 million in 2015. Public buses run by BEST cover almost all parts of the metropolis, as well as parts of Navi Mumbai, Mira-Bhayandar and Thane. The BEST operates a total of 4,608 buses, ferrying 4.5 million passengers daily over 390 routes. Its fleet consists of single-decker, double-decker, vestibule, low-floor, disabled-friendly, air-conditioned and Euro III compliant diesel, compressed natural gas, and electric buses fitted with CCTV cameras. BEST introduced air-conditioned buses in 1998. BEST buses are red, based originally on London's Routemaster buses. Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation buses provide intercity transport connecting Mumbai with other cities of Maharashtra and nearby states. The Navi Mumbai Municipal Transport and Thane Municipal Transport operate buses in Mumbai, connecting nodes of Navi Mumbai and Thane to parts of Mumbai.Buses are favoured for commuting short to medium distances, while trains are more economical for longer distance commutes.
The Mumbai Darshan tourist bus service serves numerous tourist attractions in the city. Bus Rapid Transit System lanes have been planned throughout Mumbai. Though 88% of the city's commuters travel by public transport, Mumbai continues to struggle with traffic congestion. Its transport system is one of the most congested in the world.
Water
consists of ferries, hovercraft and catamarans. Services are provided by government agencies and private partners. Hovercraft services plied briefly in the late 1990s between the Gateway of India and CBD Belapur in Navi Mumbai. They were scrapped due to lack of adequate infrastructure.Roads
Mumbai is served by National Highway 48, National Highway 66, National Highway 160 and National Highway 61. The Mumbai–Chennai and Mumbai–Delhi prongs of the Golden Quadrilateral system of National Highways start from the city. The Mumbai–Pune Expressway was the first expressway built in India. The Eastern Freeway was opened in 2013. The Bandra-Worli Sea Link bridge, along with Mahim Causeway, links the island city to the western suburbs. The three major road arteries of the city are the Eastern Express Highway from Sion to Thane, the Sion [Panvel Expressway] from Sion to Panvel and the Western Express Highway from Bandra to Bhayander. The long Mumbai Trans Harbour Link was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 12 January 2024, connects Mumbai with Navi Mumbai. Mumbai has approximately of roads. There are five tolled entry points to the city by road.Mumbai had about 721,000 private vehicles as of March 2014, 56,459 black and yellow taxis as of 2005, and 106,000 auto rickshaws, as of May 2013.
Mumbai currently has one operational expresswaythe Mumbai–Pune Expresswaywhich directly connects Mumbai with Pune. In the coming years, the great metropolis will be connected with more expressways. They are as follows:
- Delhi–Mumbai Expressway: Under construction since March 2019, to be completed by 2027.
- Mumbai–Nagpur Expressway: Under construction since January 2019, already opened as of June 2025.
- Konkan Expressway: Proposed.
Air
The Navi Mumbai International airport, built in the Ulwe suburb in Raigad district, will help relieve the increasing traffic burden on the existing airport. The Navi Mumbai International Airport was inaugurated on 8 October 2025 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and flight operations began on 25 December 2025. Upon opening of the Navi Mumbai airport, Mumbai became the first city in India to have 2 operational airports.
The Juhu Aerodrome was India's first airport, and now hosts the Bombay Flying Club and a heliport operated by state-owned Pawan Hans.
Sea
Mumbai is served by two major ports, Mumbai Port and Jawaharlal Nehru Port, which lies just across the creek in Navi Mumbai. Mumbai Port has one of the best natural harbours in the world, and has extensive wet and dry dock accommodation facilities. Jawaharlal Nehru Port, commissioned on 26 May 1989, is the busiest and most modern major port in India. It handles around 50% of the country's total containerised cargo. Ferries from Ferry Wharf in Mazagaon allow access to islands near the city.The city is also the headquarters of the Western Naval Command, and also an important base for the Indian Navy.
Utility services
Under colonial rule, tanks were the only source of water in Mumbai, with many localities having been named after them. The MCGM supplies potable water to the city from six lakes, most of which comes from the Tulsi and Vihar lakes. The Tansa lake supplies water to the western suburbs and parts of the island city along the Western Railway. The water is filtered at Bhandup, which is Asia's largest water filtration plant. India's first underground water tunnel was completed in Mumbai to supply water to the Bhandup filtration plant.About 700 million litres of water, out of a daily supply of 3.5 billion litres, is lost by way of water thefts, illegal connections and leakages, per day in Mumbai. Almost all of Mumbai's daily refuse of, of which is plastic waste, is transported to dumping grounds in Gorai in the northwest, Mulund in the northeast, and to the Deonar dumping ground in the east. Sewage treatment is carried out at Worli and Bandra, and disposed of by two independent marine outfalls of and at Bandra and Worli respectively.
Electricity is distributed by the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport undertaking in the island city, and by Adani Transmission, Tata Power and the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Co. Ltd in the suburbs. Power supply cables are underground, which reduces pilferage, thefts and other losses.
Cooking gas is supplied in the form of liquefied petroleum gas cylinders sold by state-owned oil companies, as well as through piped natural gas supplied by Mahanagar Gas Limited.
The largest telephone service provider is the state-owned MTNL, which held a monopoly over fixed line and cellular services up until 2000, and provides fixed line as well as mobile WLL services. Mobile phone coverage is extensive, and the main service providers are Vodafone India, Bharti Airtel, MTNL, and Reliance Jio. Both GSM and CDMA services are available in the city. Mumbai, along with the area served by telephone exchanges in Navi Mumbai and Kalyan is classified as a Metro telecom circle. Many of the above service providers also provide broadband internet and wireless internet access in Mumbai., Mumbai had the highest number of internet users in India with 16.4 million users.
Demographics
According to the 2011 census, the population of Mumbai city was 12,479,608. The population density is estimated to be about. The living space is per person. Mumbai Metropolitan Region was home to 20,748,395 people by 2011. Greater Mumbai, the area under the administration of the MCGM, has a literacy rate of 94.7%, higher than the national average of 86.7%. The number of slum-dwellers in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region is estimated to be 90 lakh, up from 60 lakh in 2001 which constitutes approximately 38.5% of the region.The sex ratio in 2011 was 838 females per 1,000 males in the island city, 857 in the suburbs, and 848 as a whole in Greater Mumbai, all numbers lower than the national average of 914 females per 1,000 males. The low sex ratio is partly because of the large number of male migrants who come to the city to work.
Dharavi, Asia's second largest slum is located in central Mumbai and houses between 800,000 and 10 lakh people in, making it one of the most densely populated areas on Earth with a population density of at least.
The number of migrants to Mumbai from outside Maharashtra during the 1991–2001 decade was 11.2 lakh, which amounted to 54.8% of the net addition to the population of Mumbai.
The number of households in Mumbai is forecast to rise from 42 lakh in 2008 to 66 lakh in 2020. The number of households with annual incomes of 20 lakh rupees will increase from 4% to 10% by 2020, amounting to 660,000 families. The number of households with incomes from 10 to 20 lakh rupees is also estimated to increase from 4% to 15% by 2020. According to the 2016 report of the Central Pollution Control Board, Mumbai is the noisiest city in India, ahead of Lucknow, Hyderabad and Delhi.
Ethnic groups and religions
The religious groups represented in Greater Mumbai as of 2011 include Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, Jains, Christians and Sikhs. The linguistic/ethnic demographics in the Greater Mumbai Area are: Maharashtrians, Gujaratis, with the rest hailing from other parts of India.Native Christians include East Indian Catholics, converted by the Portuguese during the 16th century. Jews settled in Mumbai during the 18th century. The Bene Israeli Jewish community of Mumbai, who migrated from the Konkan villages, south of Mumbai, are believed to be the descendants of the Jews of Israel shipwrecked off the Konkan coast, probably in the year 175 BCE, during the reign of the Greek ruler, Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Mumbai is home to the largest population of Parsi Zoroastrians in the world, numbering about 60,000, however their population is declining rapidly. Parsis migrated to India from Greater Iran following the Muslim conquest of Persia in the seventh century. The oldest Muslim communities in Mumbai include the Dawoodi Bohras, Ismaili Khojas, and Konkani Muslims.
Language
is the official and working language of the bureaucracy along with English. Sixteen major languages of India are spoken in Mumbai, the most common being Marathi and its dialect East Indian. Marathi is spoken by 35.30% of the population around 4,396,870 people. Hindi is spoken by 25.90% of the population around 3,582,719 people, making it the second largest dominant language in Mumbai. Many Hindi speakers are workers from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar who migrate seasonally to Mumbai to work as labourers. Urdu and Gujarati are spoken by 11.73% and 11.45% respectively. English is the principal language of the city's white collar workforce. A colloquial form of Hindi, known as Bombay Hindi is spoken on the streets.Education
Schools
Schools in Mumbai are either "municipal schools" or private schools, which in some cases receive financial aid from the government. Marathi or English is the usual language of instruction.The primary education system of the MCGM is urban Asia's largest. The MCGM operates 1,188 primary schools teaching 485,531 students in eight languages. The MCGM has 55,576 students in its 49 secondary schools.
Higher education
Under the 10+2+3/4 plan, students complete ten years of schooling and then two years in junior college, where they select one of three streams: arts, commerce, or science. This is followed by either a general degree course, or a professional degree course, such as law, engineering and medicine. Most colleges are affiliated with the University of Mumbai, one of the largest universities in the world by number of graduates.The University of Mumbai is one of the premier universities in India. It was ranked 41 among the Top 50 Engineering Schools of the world by America's Business Insider in 2012, and was the only university in the list from the five emerging BRICS nations. Moreover, the University of Mumbai was ranked 5th in the list of best universities in India by India Today in 2013 and ranked at 62 in the QS BRICS University rankings for 2013. QS ranked it 10th among the top Universities of India in 2013. With 7 of the top ten Indian Universities being purely science and technology universities, QS ranked it India's 3rd best multidisciplinary University.
The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai, Institute of Chemical Technology, Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute, which are India's premier engineering and technology schools, along with SNDT Women's University are the autonomous universities located in Mumbai. In April 2015, IIT Bombay launched the first US-India joint EMBA program alongside Washington University in St. Louis. Thadomal Shahani Engineering College is the oldest private engineering college affiliated to the federal University of Mumbai and the first to offer undergraduate courses in Computer Engineering, Information Technology, Biomedical Engineering and Biotechnology.
Mumbai is home to the IIM Mumbai, Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, S P [Jain Institute of Management and Research], Tata Institute of Social Sciences and several other management schools. Government Law College and Sydenham College, respectively the oldest law and commerce colleges in India, are based in Mumbai. The Sir J. J. School of Art is Mumbai's oldest art institution.
In research, Mumbai is home to the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, and the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre. The BARC operates CIRUS, a 40 MW nuclear research reactor in Trombay.
Culture
Mumbai's culture offers a blend of traditional and cosmopolitan festivals, food, entertainment, and night life. Many cultures, religions, and cuisines coexist in the city, producing varied restaurants, cinemas, theatres, sports events and museums.Mumbai is the birthplace of Indian cinema. It has many cinemas that feature Bollywood, Marathi and Hollywood movies. The Mumbai International Film Festival and the award ceremony of the Filmfare Awards, the oldest and prominent film awards given for Hindi film industry in India, are held in Mumbai. Despite most of the professional theatre groups that formed during the British Raj having disbanded by the 1950s, Mumbai has developed a thriving "theatre movement" tradition in Marathi, Hindi, English, and other regional languages.
Contemporary art is featured in both government-funded art spaces and private commercial galleries. The government-funded institutions include the Jehangir Art Gallery and the National Gallery of Modern Art. Built in 1833, the Asiatic Society of Mumbai is one of the oldest public libraries in the city. The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya is a renowned museum in South Mumbai which houses rare ancient exhibits of Indian history.
Mumbai has a zoo named Jijamata Udyaan, which also harbours a garden. The literary traditions of the city have been highlighted internationally by Booker Prize winners such as Salman Rushdie and Aravind Adiga. Marathi literature has been modernised in the works of Mumbai-based authors such as Mohan Apte, Anant Kanekar, and Gangadhar Gadgil, and is promoted through an annual Sahitya Akademi Award, a literary honour bestowed by India's National Academy of Letters.
Mumbai residents celebrate both Western and Indian festivals. Ganesh Chaturthi is the biggest and most important festival of Mumbai; there are almost 5000 Ganpati Pandals set up in the city for the celebrations. Other festivals like Diwali, Holi, Navratri, Christmas, Rakshabandhan, Makar Sankranti, Dussera, Eid, Durga Puja, Ram Navami, Shiv Jayanti and Maha Shivratri are some of the popular festivals in the city. The Kala Ghoda Arts Festival is an exhibition that encapsulates works of artists in the fields of music, dance, theatre and films.
The Banganga Festival is a two-day music festival, held annually in the month of January, which is organised by the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation at the historic Banganga Tank in Mumbai. According to a legend, it is associated with Rama and Lakshmana of the Sanskrit epic Ramayana. Similarly it is also linked to Parashurama in Hinduism. On the bank of the Banganga tank, there is a temple known as Parshuram Mandir dedicated to Parshuram.
The Elephanta Festival—celebrated every February on the Elephanta Islands—is dedicated to classical Indian dance and music and attracts performers from across the country. Public holidays specific to the city and the state include Maharashtra Day on 1 May, to celebrate the formation of Maharashtra state on 1 May 1960, and Gudi Padwa which is the New Year's Day for Marathi people.
Beaches are a major tourist attraction in the city. The major beaches in Mumbai are Girgaum Chowpatty, Juhu Beach, Dadar Chowpatty, Gorai Beach, Marve Beach, Versova Beach, Madh Beach, Aksa Beach and Manori Beach. Most of the beaches are unfit for swimming, except Girgaum Chowpatty and Juhu Beach. Essel World is a theme park and amusement centre situated close to Gorai Beach, and includes Asia's largest theme water park, Water Kingdom. Adlabs Imagica opened in April 2013 is located near the city of Khopoli off the Mumbai-Pune Expressway.
Architecture
The architecture of the city is a blend of Gothic Revival, Indo-Saracenic, Art Deco, and other contemporary styles. Most of the buildings during the British period, such as the Victoria Terminus and University of Mumbai, were built in Gothic Revival style. Their architectural features include a variety of European influences such as German gables, Dutch roofs, Swiss timbering, Romance arches, Tudor casements, and traditional Indian features. There are also a few Indo-Saracenic styled buildings such as the Gateway of India. Art Deco styled landmarks can be found along Marine Drive and west of the Oval Maidan. Mumbai has the second highest number of Art Deco buildings in the world after Miami. In the newer suburbs, modern buildings dominate the landscape. Mumbai has by far the highest number of skyscrapers in India, with 956 existing skyscrapers and 272 under construction as of 2009.The Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee, established in 1995, formulates special regulations and by-laws to assist in the conservation of the city's heritage structures. Mumbai has three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Elephanta Caves and the Victorian and Art Deco Ensemble of Mumbai|Victorian and Art Deco Ensemble]. In the south of Mumbai, there are colonial-era buildings and Soviet-style offices. In the east are factories and some slums. On the West coast are former-textile mills being demolished and skyscrapers built on top. There are 237 buildings taller than, compared with 327 in Shanghai and 855 in New York.
Cityscape
Mumbai's cityscape consists of a variety of tall buildings and structures, most of which have been built in the last two decades. There was a lull in construction from the mid-1990s, after which construction projects began taking the skyline upwards, with a major acceleration since 2000, when the Lower Parel area began developing.Mumbai, with a commanding 77% share of tall buildings in India, is poised to maintain its position as the frontrunner in tall building construction due to its ability to command premium prices compared to other cities.
Mumbai has more residential tall buildings rather than commercial, unlike the trend globally. Limited land resources and an exponential increase in urban population were the primary reasons for Mumbai's vertical growth compared to other Tier 1 Indian cities. As of June 2023, Mumbai has a total of around 250 tall buildings out of which more than 100 are completed, and more than 90 were under construction.
Food
Media
, the Hindi film industry based in Mumbai, produces around 150–200 films every year. The name Bollywood is a blend of Bombay and Hollywood. The 2000s saw a growth in Bollywood's popularity overseas. This led filmmaking to new heights in terms of quality, cinematography and innovative story lines as well as technical advances such as special effects and animation. Studios in Goregaon, including Film City, are the location for most movie sets.File:Times of India Building.jpg|thumb|The Times of Indias first office is opposite the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus where it was founded.
Mumbai has numerous newspaper publications, television and radio stations. Marathi dailies enjoy the maximum readership share in the city and the top Marathi language newspapers are Maharashtra Times, Navakaal, Lokmat, Loksatta, Mumbai Chaufer, Saamana and Sakaal. English language newspapers published in Mumbai include The Times of India, Hindustan Times, and The Indian Express. Asia's oldest newspaper, Bombay Samachar, has been published in Gujarati since 1822. Bombay Durpan, the first Marathi newspaper, was founded by Balshastri Jambhekar in 1832.
The metropolis is the hub of many international media corporations, with many news channels and print publications. The national television broadcaster, Doordarshan, provides two free terrestrial channels, while three main cable networks serve most households. Prominent DTH entertainment services in Mumbai include Dish TV and Tata Sky.
There are twelve radio stations in Mumbai, with nine broadcasting on the FM band, and three All India Radio stations broadcasting on the AM band. Mumbai has access to Commercial radio providers such as Sirius. The Conditional Access System started by the Union Government in 2006 met a poor response in Mumbai due to competition from its sister technology Direct-to-Home transmission service.
Sports
is more popular than any other sport in Mumbai. It is home to the Board of Control for [Cricket in India] and Indian Premier League. Mumbai's first-class team Mumbai cricket team has won 41 Ranji Trophy titles, the most by any team. The city based Mumbai Indians compete in the Indian Premier League. Mumbai has two international cricket stadiums, the Wankhede Stadium and the Brabourne Stadium. The first cricket test match in India was played in Mumbai at the Bombay Gymkhana. The biggest cricketing event to be staged in the city so far is the final of the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup which was played at the Wankhede Stadium. Mumbai and London are the only two cities to have hosted both a World Cup final and the 2006 [ICC Champions Trophy Final|final] of an ICC Champions Trophy which was played at the Brabourne Stadium in 2006.Football is another popular sport in the city, with the FIFA World Cup and the English Premier League being followed widely. The Mumbai City FC of Indian Super League play their home matches at the Football Arena">Association football">Football Arena. While the I-League 2 club Mumbai Kenkre FC uses the Cooperage Ground as home ground.
Mumbai's first professional American football franchise, the Mumbai Gladiators, played its first season, in Pune, in late 2012.
In field hockey, Mumbai is home to the Mumbai Marines and Mumbai Magicians in the World Series Hockey and Hockey India League respectively. Matches in the city are played at the Mahindra Hockey Stadium.
The Indian Badminton League, now known as the Premier Badminton League is also visiting Mumbai since its inaugural edition in 2013 when the final was held in Mumbai's National Sports Club of India.
Rugby is another growing sport in Mumbai with league matches being held at the Bombay Gymkhana from June to November.
Every February, Mumbai holds derby races at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse. Mcdowell's Derby is held in February at the Turf Club in Mumbai. In March 2004, the Mumbai Grand Prix was part of the F1 powerboat world championship, and the Force India F1 team car was unveiled in the city, in 2008. In 2004, the annual Mumbai Marathon was established as a part of "The Greatest Race on Earth". Mumbai had also played host to the Kingfisher Airlines [Tennis Open], an International Series tournament of the ATP World Tour, in 2006 and 2007.
Mumbai hosted the 141st IOC Session from 15 to 17 October 2023.
Regional and professional sports teams from Mumbai
Former regional and professional sports teams from Mumbai
| Team/Club | Tournament/League | Sport | Venue | Established | Ceased |
| Mumbai Champs | Indian Cricket League | Cricket | N/A | 2007 | 2009 |
| Mumbai Marines | World Series Hockey | Field hockey | Mahindra Hockey Stadium | 2011 | 2013 |
| Mumbai Magicians | Hockey India League | Field hockey | Mahindra Hockey Stadium | 2012 | 2014 |
| Mumbai Masters | Premier Badminton League | Badminton | National Sports Club of India | 2013 | 2016 |
| Mumbai FC | I-League | Football | Cooperage Ground | 2007 | 2017 |
| Mumbai Challengers | UBA Pro Basketball League | Basketball | – | 2015 | 2017 |