Up from Peasantry to Wizardry

Prof Dr Anand Patil The Government of Maharashtra’s Academy of Literature and Culture has recently published an ambitious trilogy of Marathi works on cultural theory and criticism — a project entrusted to one of India’s senior comparatists, the former Head and Professor of English at Goa University, Prof Dr Anand Patil. Despite spending two decades in Goa, where much of his experimental work in Marathi and English went largely unnoticed in Maharashtra, his contribution is formidable: 10 books...

min read

Prof Dr Anand Patil The Government of Maharashtra’s Academy of Literature and Culture has recently published an ambitious trilogy of Marathi works on cultural theory and criticism — a project entrusted to one of India’s senior comparatists, the former Head and Professor of English at Goa University, Prof Dr Anand Patil. Despite spending two decades in Goa, where much of his experimental work in Marathi and English went largely unnoticed in Maharashtra, his contribution is formidable: 10 books in English and 52 in Marathi. The editor of The Cambridge Companion to Comparative Literature, World Literature and Culture (2011) had also invited him to contribute to that prestigious volume. For a man who began his education in a village primary school conducted in a temple near the Masai Plateau, the journey is extraordinary. Born into an illiterate, marginal farming family in Shittur, Kolhapur district, he remained unaware of his own genealogy well into his seventies. It was this search for ancestry — and the surprise it revealed — that nudged him towards writing the bestseller Maharashtrala Mahit Nasalele Samrat Shivaji? (Emperor Shivaji Unknown to Maharashtra, 2017). His paternal lineage indicates that his ancestral surname was Sankpal, and that land had once been granted to his forefather by Jijabai, who was killed in the Battle of Ghodkhind. His maternal genealogy proved even more startling: the neighbouring village of Save was founded by the Mahadik family of Tarale in Satara, and the only Lad Patil household there is identified as Mahadik — hinting at a link to the clan of Shivaji Maharaj’s son-in-law. This discovery led him to study Modi script and publish life narratives of Shahaji, Shivaji and Jijabai, dedicating these works to the men and women of both families who carry the legacy of the Bhosale rebels. A committee of intellectuals at Shivaji University will release these volumes and felicitate him on Thursday in Kolhapur. Spanning 2,100 pages, the titles themselves suggest both range and rigour: 1. Cultural Analysis — Society, Culture and Literature; 2. Cultural Theories Across the World; 3. Cultural Studies — Old and New. The 60-page introduction and exhaustive bibliography testify to his extensive reading and multidisciplinary approach. He has acknowledged the early encouragement of his former Head, Dr S. K. Kulkarni — an immigrant from Karnataka — who urged him to teach creative writing and comparative literature. This support helped him secure the state government’s approval for this large-scale project. His book on creative writing earned him his fourth state literary award, and several of his works — translated into Hindi, Kannada and English — are taught in more than 100 universities across India. Rural writing Yet his creative journey in Marathi began in Kolhapur, when Prof Dr Anand Patil joined Rajarshi Shahu College as a lecturer. His early rural stories and radio plays drew praise from renowned writer Shankar Patil, who described him as “a rising sun of rural writing”. Patil would later remark wryly that “Maharashtra turned that sun lukewarm”, but his subsequent years in Goa — and six international tours — broadened his perspective, enriching his literary output in both languages. A student of Shivaji College, Satara, he was shaped by its Earn and learn scheme, and Shivaji University once showcased his autobiography-like résumé at a NAAC evaluation. The upcoming felicitation in Kolhapur will be attended by noted scholar Padma Shri Ganesh Devi from Dharwad and Dr Deepak Pawar of Mumbai University. Prof Anand Patil's contribution to literature is vast: three novels, six short-story collections, three travelogues, a play, four translations, four radio plays, character sketches, 25 forewords and 18 collections of essays in comparative and cultural studies. His doctoral thesis, Western Influence on Marathi Drama (1818–1947), remains a pioneering comparative study and is lauded in Aparna Dharwadker’s Indian Drama (Cambridge University Press). The Marathi translation of this thesis won him an MS University, Pune award. His career began as a tutor in English; he later secured a merit scholarship for his M.A. and ranked second in English at Shivaji University. His years of service in colleges under the Rayat Shikshan Sanstha brought him recognition. His travelogue Patalachi Londonwari and its one-man stage adaptation remain popular. His novels have fetched awards, and he has received a total of 20 honours, including four from the Maharashtra government. A UGC-sponsored national seminar was organised on his work in Goa, and three critical books have since been published on his writings. (The writer is a senior journalist based in Kolhapur. Views personal.)

Should BEST Ply Long-Distance Bus Routes?

Sudhir Badami
21 hours ago
4 min read

Mumbai doesn’t need more projects—it needs a unified, high-capacity public transport system.

Mumbai continues to expand its transport network, yet daily travel remains slow, unsafe and costly. The problem is no longer the number of projects but the lack of a unified, high-capacity public transport system.

To assess the financial viability of a transportation project, one must calculate the Internal Rate of Return (IRR). This is followed by estimating the annual commuter-kilometre totals, projecting the revenue generated from them, and determining the associated cash outflows.

In transport projects, real safety, comfort, speed and affordability are crucial. In Greater Mumbai, many current projects are merely trying to keep pace with the rapid growth in two- and four-wheelers by adding supporting infrastructure.

Vehicular growth becomes inevitable when public transport is unsafe, uncomfortable and slow. Peak-hour traffic crawls at 8–10 kmph, yet cars still offer safety and comfort, while two-wheelers provide some speed, though with a higher risk.

Transport planners and the ruling dispensation argue that buses in Mumbai should only feed the suburban rail, metro and monorail, not run longer routes, fearing they will divert passengers from an already underused metro. In reality, the suburban rail remains severely overcrowded. Commuters simply calculate costs and choose what they can afford. Instead of addressing gaps in affordable public transport, policymakers are penalising those who keep the city running, further increasing the financial burden on daily travellers.

Alongside the 20 km of elevated monorail, a 507 km metro–monorail network is planned for the MMR, including about 40 km underground. Currently, only around 100 km are operational, with plans to expand to 337 km by 2031.

Introduce premium BRT services along the 507 km network—or more if needed—with the capacity to draw about 65 per cent of private-vehicle users. Apply congestion charges on select roads to shift travel to public transport. PBRT services would run every 20 seconds.

The Metro and Monorail network will not be fully completed until 2041. Even then, it must operate at full capacity — 507 km, with eight-coach trains every three minutes on most lines and six-coach trains on Lines 1 and 11. Until this happens, a major gap will remain between available capacity and what is needed to ease the overloaded suburban rail system. Even after completion, the shortfall is expected to be about 20 per cent.

To bridge this shortfall, high-capacity BRT services should operate within the premium BRT corridors at 20-second intervals. It is also essential to deter private-vehicle use during peak hours.

To support this shift, introduce BRT-compliant, app-based microbus premium aggregator taxi services, with enough vehicles to ensure boarding within one minute of booking.

In suburban Mumbai and beyond, share-autos provide vital last-mile connectivity. But their dominance means metered rickshaws are often unavailable, creating hardship for those who don’t use fixed share-auto routes or prefer not to travel in crowded IPT services. With no alternatives, share-auto users also pay more per trip. Bus services are infrequent and quickly overcrowded.

To improve last-mile connectivity, introduce microbus stage-carrier services along existing share-auto routes and feeder minibus corridors. Peak-time frequencies should match demand, with intervals as short as 10 seconds, ensuring smoother commuter movement.

In the proposed scheme, commuters would no longer require door-to-door bus services, as buses or microbuses would arrive within a minute at any stop. Long, through-running routes would become redundant, with PBRT and HC-BRT services, supported by microbus stage carriers, meeting most travel needs.

To improve Metro ridership, it must be integrated with HC-BRT, Suburban Rail (First, Second and AC classes) and the Monorail, and treated as a unified service rather than separate financial entities. Fares should be sustainably low for both commuters and operators, encouraging wider use of convenient modes. The Railways’ plan to make all services air-conditioned will also help distribute passenger loads more evenly.

The only modes priced significantly above the integrated fare structure would be the PBRT and peak-period congestion charges for private vehicles on selected roads, reflecting their premium nature.

Another necessary feature is single ticketing. A commuter would enter their start and end points in the app, which would display the two quickest routes and the two lowest-cost options. The commuter then selects a route, pays online and follows the instructions.

PBRT, HC-BRT and microbus stage-carrier services in Greater Mumbai would be operated by BEST. Trunk routes linking the eight municipal corporations and nine city councils in the MMR could also be managed by BEST or a new SPV. In these cities, and across the 48 census towns and 1,427 villages, microbus stage-carrier services would act as feeders to all MRTS modes — Monorail, Metro, Suburban Rail, PBRT and HC-BRT — under the respective municipal transport authorities.

Within this framework, private operators can run the Premium Aggregator Taxi Service, deploying up to four lakh vehicles that meet specified BRT-compliant design standards.

In all this, it must be remembered that pedestrian facilities must be given top priority.

(The writer is B.Tech, M.Tech. Structural Engineering from IIT Bombay. Views personal.)