Ahead of G20 event, Mumbai covered up in sheets

This is not the first time that Indian authorities have attempted to hide slums and areas struck by poverty before major international events or visits by foreign dignitaries.

The same was witnessed in Gujarat too when Donald Trump, former President of USA, was invited by the PM Narendra Modi to showcase the state as a symbol of achievements.

India chairs the Group of 20 ( G20) economies this year and a three day meeting in Mumbai which began on December 13, concluded on December 16 with many international delegates participating in the event.

But Mumbai city, used to hosting many international events and leaders, this time witnessed something strange -- Municipal authorities attempting to cover up its slums and airbrush them from sight.

The sides of roads in many areas that have housed slums for decades saw tall billboards advertising the event along with drapes and giant sheets strung up on bamboo poles.

Social media posts also showed barricades covering slum areas across the city.

Regular passers-by were quite taken aback by the claustrophobic look the cover-up gave to the city. Smart cities have been a Pet project of the Modi regime since 2014 but in the past eight years, no city has been able to eradicate its slums or reduce garbage dumps and other ugly sights.

However, barricading slums behind walls and drapes and keeping the residents herded behind them like animals during international events seems to have become the preferred way out of tall claims by the Modi regime as witnessed in the past in Ahmedabad, the capital of Modi's home state of Gujarat, or even Varanasi, his constituency. Meanwhile the miseries of the barricaded residents continue and nothing is ever done to improve their lives or living conditions.

As usual it, is all just event management.