Big B backs Metro, gets Twitter flak

Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan on Tuesday lent his baritone to the chorus of voices lobbying for the metro as a faster, convenient and efficient mode of transport.

He cited the example of his friend, who, during a medical emergency, used the metro instead of his car.

His tweet also suggested that metro is the solution to pollution and asked his followers to grow more trees. He said he had already raised trees in his garden and asked Twitterati whether they had embarked on their green initiative.

"Friend of mine had a medical emergency, decided to take METRO instead of

his car. He came back very impressed, said it was faster, convenient and most efficient.’’

Interestingly, minutes after his tweet, several citizens responded, speaking about the benefits of the metro. But several others also tweeted about the importance of forests and questioned Bachchan's tweet.

"METRO came to his house and picked him up? Or METRO dropped him at the casualty of the hospital? Kya Bachchan saab .... Kuch bhi," wondered Gokulchan.

Other Tweeple talked about the controversial metro car shed in Aarey, which requires the felling of more than 2,000 trees. Tanmay VS tweeted, "Metro is super beneficial & so are forests. Our gardens don't serve the purpose and cannot be a substitute for forests floodplains & wildlife habitats. Till July we were grappling with a water crisis & later with heavy downpour leading to floods. The city was stranded for hours. We need 2 balance this." Netizen Manisha Singh tweeted, "Also, we cannot afford to kill trees in Mumbai, at all. The BMC census says, 'There is 1 tree for every 4 persons in Mumbai'. According to an IISC 2014 report, the ideal tree-human ratio should be 7 trees per person.’’

For his support, Bachchan received plaudits from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority. Ashwini Bhide, MMRCL managing director, retweeted and commented, "Thank u Bachchan Ji for depicting the importance of Metro so succinctly. Thank you for your support. We are committed to commissioning the entire Mumbai Metro network, including Mumbai Metro3 and at the earliest provide faster, safer, convenient & pollution free commute.’’