Mumbai has taken significant steps to mitigate flooding during the monsoon season, with 43 large pumping stations now operational and a smart pump monitoring system in place. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was briefed on these measures during a monsoon preparedness review meeting held on Friday.
Key Preparations for Monsoon
Officials informed Fadnavis that approximately 3,000 beds have been reserved in hospitals for potential monsoon-related disasters. Disaster management centers will operate 24x7, and train speeds will be controlled along the Konkan railway and Ghat sections. The Western Naval Command has made large and small ships, helicopters, and interceptor craft available, while the Air Force has prepared air ambulance and air cargo facilities.
Deployment of Rescue Teams
Ten teams of the State Disaster Relief Force have been operationalized, with two additional teams sanctioned. In the Konkan division, 939 villages are prone to landslides, prompting preventive measures. Based on past flood experiences in the Savitri and Vashishthi rivers, both riverbeds have been desilted.
Presentation and Ministerial Inputs
A presentation on disaster preparedness was delivered by Bhalchandra Chavan, director of the state disaster management authority, along with divisional commissioners from Konkan, Pune, Nagpur, Nashik, Amravati, and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. Disaster Management Minister Girish Mahajan highlighted that dam water releases during monsoon cause floods in riverside villages. He stressed the need for proper inter-departmental coordination and structural audits of bridges to prevent accidents, recommending traffic stoppage on dangerous bridges.
Pre-Disaster Planning
Minister of State for Relief and Rehabilitation Ashish Jaiswal emphasized pre-disaster preparedness, local rescue teams, and mapping of dangerous areas in flood-affected villages. He suggested providing rescue teams, shelters, and necessary facilities in advance to villages likely to be flooded. Jaiswal also called for improving the early warning system for dam water releases from Madhya Pradesh.
Rehabilitation and AI Integration
Jaiswal highlighted the need to rehabilitate dangerous houses built on river and canal banks, suggesting relocation to safer places under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. Fadnavis directed the development of an integrated command and control system based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) for disaster management.
