“Don’t Leave Home If Not Needed”: E Shinde’s Appeal After Rain Halts Mumbai

As heavy overnight rain left Mumbai struggling with waterlogging, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday appealed to people not to leave home unless it’s necessary. He said he has also asked the city police chief not to allow anyone near the beaches.

Mumbai received 300 mm of rainfall between 1-7 am this morning, leaving the streets waterlogged and impacting trains and flights. It’s still raining after a break.

Speaking to reporters about how Mumbai is trying to cope with the challenging situation, Mr Shinde detailed the steps taken by the civic and rescue teams.

Railway tracks were submerged at several places and the Railways, NDRF and civic officials pumped out a lot of water, he said, adding that trains are running now.

“461 motor pumps of the municipal corporation and 200 pumps of the Railways are running. I was in touch with all the departments since morning. Central and Harbour rail line services have started. I took stock of the entire state. There is an orange alert in coastal areas. Army, Navy and Air Force have been asked to stay on alert,” said the Chief Minister.

Besides, seven pumping stations are being built in the city, he said.

The Chief Minister said civic officials have been deployed in the waterlogged areas while schools have been given holidays and all agencies put on alert to avoid any untoward incident.

Mumbai is the only city with micro-tunneling, which is helping in draining the water, he said.