Rains days away, nullahs’ cleanup not over, BMC corporators warn of flooding

Mumbai: With the monsoon around the corner, corporators across party lines raised concerns over the pace and the quality of nullah desilting works in the city. Many warned that Mumbai could face severe flooding if critical outfalls and drains are not cleared immediately.During a meeting of BMC’s standing committee on Friday, corporators alleged that only floating garbage was being removed at several locations and deep silt and debris remained untouched. Questions were also raised over the actual quantity of silt removed, GPS monitoring of disposal at dumping grounds, and lack of focus on chronic flooding spots.NCP’s Saeeda Khan said the administration was only removing floating material from drains, while crucial work related to outfalls and Mithi river was being neglected. “If this continues, there can again be flooding during the monsoon.”Congress’s leader in the House Ashraf Azmi questioned the disposal and said the planning process begins too late every year. “Nullah cleaning should be decided in Jan-Feb itself. More than 50% work is still incomplete and zone 5, which includes Kurla, Chembur and Chunabhatti, is lagging. GPS devices are put on scooters and moved around to show fake movement. Mumbai is going to flood,” he warned.AIMIM’s Zamir Qureshi demanded stricter provisions against erring contractors and said house gullies directly lead to nullahs in M-East ward. “Why are we repeatedly giving erring contractors a chance?”Committee chairman Prabhakar Shinde acknowledged that works in zone 5 were progressing slowly. “Most areas should be covered before the monsoon. We will conduct another inspection on May 25-26. Any contractor found deficient will face stringent action,” he said.