Saturday, 04 July 2026
Saturday, 04 July 2026
Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday appealed to people to avoid “unnecessary travel” as incessant and heavy rain threw life out of gear in Mumbai and its metropolitan region, triggering incidents of road cave-in, tree fall and house collapse and disrupting road and rail traffic.
The continuous downpour, coupled with the India Meteorological Department (IMD)'s extremely heavy rainfall alert, forced the civic body to declare a holiday for schools and colleges in the afternoon.
The showers led to water-logging in several low-lying areas of the metropolis, including Andheri, Kurla, Sakinaka, Chembur, Santacruz, Goregaon and Powai, and crippled the services of the public transport utility as well posed difficulties for the users of private vehicles.
Mumbai drowning in the rains is not a new phenomenon but an annual illness that plagues India’s commercial capital. Despite the late arrival of monsoon, Mumbai has been witnessing heavy rainfall since the beginning of this week.
Water stagnated on tracks, specially between Nalasopara and Virar stations on the Western Railway line, affecting train services that most of Mumbai depends on for travel.
While the railway administration said trains on the route were running 15 to 20 minutes behind the schedule, passengers complained that the operations came to a standstill.
Train traffic on other routes – Main and Harbour lines – were also affected.
Maharashtra chief minister Fadnavis urged people in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and Pune-Nashik belt to strictly follow official weather advisories and avoid unnecessary travel in view of the warning of heavy rainfall and storms till July 6.
Several parts of Mumbai recorded over 100 mm rain in the 24-hour period till 8am on Saturday, civic officials said.
As per the data shared by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), in the western suburbs, Bandra (H West ward office) recorded the highest rainfall at 150.6 mm, followed by Supari Tank, Bandra (146 mm) and Pali Chimbai, Bandra (143.2 mm).
In the island city, Parel received 141.8 mm, followed by Matunga-Dadar with 135.2 mm, Fort with 120.8 mm, Wadala with 118.3 mm and Lower Parel with 118 mm.
Downpour lashed the eastern suburbs as well, with Vikhroli logging 143 mm, followed by Ghatkopar at 136.4 mm, Mankhurd at 134.2 mm, Chembur at 127.6 mm, and Maharashtra Nagar in Mankhurd at 124 mm.
The island city recorded an average rainfall of 99 mm, the eastern suburbs 98 mm and the western suburbs 94 mm in 24 hours.
From 8am to 2pm on Saturday, the city recorded an average rainfall of 28 mm while the eastern suburbs received 96 mm and the western suburbs 83 mm, indicating significantly heavy showers in the suburban belt.
Heavy rains, coupled with high tide, led to water-logging at several locations, and civic teams were deployed to clear the accumulated water, the BMC said.
The Andheri subway was closed for vehicular traffic, while the movement of vehicles was also stopped due to submerged roads in Sakinaka, Chandivali and Vile Parle.
As a precautionary measure, police closed several waterlogged roads, including stretches in Chembur, Andheri and Vikhroli, and advised motorists to avoid the affected areas, the BMC said.
The civic body said 64 incidents of tree falls were reported across the city -- 18 in the eastern suburbs and 36 in the western suburbs. No injuries were reported in these incidents.
Eight incidents of house or wall collapse were also reported. In one such incident at Banewadi in Byculla, a two-storey structure collapsed, injuring two men and one woman. They were admitted to J J Hospital, where their condition was stated to be stable.
In Bhandup's Sonapur area, a portion of a road caved in near an under-construction site, causing a vehicle to sink into the pit. No casualty was reported.
Train services on the Central Railway routes are facing delays due to poor visibility and water accumulated on tracks at Vikhroli, the officials said.
"No abnormality till now. Trains are running with reduced speed and one caution order is imposed near Vikhroli," a CR spokesperson said.
The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking diverted buses on six routes due to waterlogging, including five in the western suburbs and one in the eastern suburbs.
The Mumbai civic body on Saturday declared a holiday for the afternoon session in all schools and colleges across the metropolis after the IMD issued a red alert of extremely heavy rainfall.
A BMC spokesperson said that the decision was taken keeping in mind the safety of students amid the forecast of extremely heavy rains.
The IMD issued the red alert for Mumbai, warning of extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places during the day.
In neighbouring Thane and Palghar, heavy rains led to water-logging in low-lying areas, and multiple tree-collapse incidents that disrupted normal life.
Thane city recorded 65.79 mm of rainfall between 8.30 am and 1.30 pm on Saturday, while Palghar district received 97.70 mm rainfall during the same period.
Fadnavis assurance
"We have requested people to avoid travel if possible so that accidents caused by heavy rain and storms can be prevented,” Maharashtra CM Fadnavis told reporters..
“Citizens should follow official alerts and venture out only in accordance with the advisories. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and state Disaster Management Cell are closely monitoring the situation," he added.
He also said genuine deficiencies in newly built infrastructure, including the Connecting Link on the Pune-Mumbai Expressway, would be rectified.
Responding to criticism on social media over the Connecting Link, Fadnavis said it was "not correct" to claim that the road had developed potholes.
"There are only two potholes," Fadnavis asserted, declaring that some people tend to amplify every issue without understanding the construction process.
Newly completed roads undergo durability tests during the monsoon, the final layer of work is taken up after the rainy season and if there are any shortcomings during this process they are identified and rectified, the CM explained.
"Mastic asphalt laid on new flyovers initially settles before performing as intended. Newly completed infrastructure also requires a settling period," he said.
Any genuine deficiencies brought to the government's notice, including those highlighted on social media, would be examined and rectified, Fadnavis said.
Highlighting the project executed by Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), Fadnavis said it includes some of the country's largest bridges and India's first tunnel built beneath a dam.
"Such engineering achievements should also be appreciated while ensuring that any shortcomings are addressed," he added.
