Mumbai: At least seven people have died across the state, including six in Pune, as heavy rains wreaked havoc in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), western Maharashtra, Konkan, and Vidarbha regions in the last 24 hours.
Airel view of Shingad raod – Photo by Mahendra Kolhe
Normal life was disrupted on Thursday as the rains affected road, railway, and air traffic, with several rivers flowing above the danger level. Residential and farmland areas near rivers in Thane, Palghar, Kalyan, Kolhapur, Pune, Vardha, and Raigad were submerged.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert (signifying heavy to very heavy rain at a few places, with extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places) for Friday in three districts – Satara, Ratnagiri and Raigad. An orange alert (heavy to very heavy rain at a few places) has been issued for Kolhapur, Pune, Sindhudurg, Mumbai, Thane and Palghar.
Chief minister Eknath Shinde reviewed the situation in Mumbai, Pune and other parts of the state, urging people not to step out of their homes unless it’s very urgent. “I have asked the administration to be on high alert. I also spoke with Army and Navy officials, and they have kept their units ready for any situation. We have prepared to airlift the people during the rescue operations. I have ordered the district administration in flood-affected areas to use funds from district planning and development funds,” he said.
After reports of a flood-like situation in MMR, Pune, and parts of western Maharashtra, deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar reached the disaster control room in Mantralaya on Thursday morning to review the situation. After that, he left for Pune, where he is the guardian minister, as the city and district were severely affected by floods.
Devastation in Pune
Numerous houses and residential areas in low-lying parts of the city were submerged on Thursday, forcing authorities to evacuate them, said officials.
Three men working at a food stall in the Deccan area died of electrocution on Wednesday night. The deceased were identified as Abhishekh Ajay Ghanekar, Akash Vinayak Mane and Shiva Parihar. One person died and another sustained injuries in a landslide in the Tahmini ghat section in Mulshi tehsil, district officials said. The deceased has been identified as Shivaji Bhairat, a resident of Mulshi. Jitendra Jambhurpane, also from Mulshi, was injured in the incident.
Two drowning incidents were reported in the city in the evening: one at the Ambil Odha stream in Bibwewadi and the other in the Mutha River at Narayan Peth, according to officials. The two deceased have not been identified yet.
In a separate incident, three people are feared trapped in a bungalow in the Lavasa area after a mudslide, police said. Local police, along with National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams, have initiated rescue operations, said authorities.
According to Pune district collector Suhas Diwase, the release of water from the Khadakwasla dam due to heavy rainfall in its catchment area resulted in flooding along the Mutha river and surrounding low-lying areas. “We have urged people not to step out from their homes,” he said.
Areas like Sinhagad Road, Bavdhan, Baner, and Deccan Gymkhana in Pune reported severe flooding, with authorities from the fire brigade and Pune Municipal Corporation’s disaster management cell working to rescue stranded people. During his tour of the district, Pawar said Army teams have been deployed at Ekta Nagar on Sinhagad Road as a precautionary measure, while NDRF personnel are also in the area.
Floods in other districts
In the last 24 hours, there were reports of flood-like situations in parts of western Maharashtra, Thane, Palghar, Vardha, and Kolhapur, said an official from the state disaster control department.
In Raigad district, a person named Kamalakar Mhatre died in floodwater in Alibag. His body was found near a creek. In another incident at Karjat, the police and local administration successfully saved a man trapped in floodwater.
In a separate incident, two residents of Murbad in Thane district drowned on Thursday afternoon while fishing in the backwaters of the Barvi dam. Despite efforts by disaster management and fire brigade officials to search for them, they could not be located until late Thursday evening. The search will resume on Friday.
Heavy rains in districts like Sangli, Kolhapur, and Satara resulted in the discharge of water from dams like Warna and Koyna, submerging thousands of acres of crops on river banks. In Sangli city, the Krishna River crossed the warning level. District guardian minister Suresh Khade urged people to cooperate with the administration while shifting them to secure places.
In another measure to control the flood situation, lift irrigation schemes like Tembhu and Mhaisal were asked to lift water from flooded areas and transfer it to areas waiting for rain. In Kolhapur, the Radhanagari dam overflowed, and its automatic gates were opened to discharge the water. As a result, the Panchganga river touched the danger mark and water entered nearby areas on its banks.
In Thane, Palghar, and Raigad districts, the Amba, Kundalika, Savitri, Ulhas, and Kalu rivers crossed the danger level, and the Patalganga flowed above the warning level. As a result, many areas in rural districts were cut off from highways.
In Kalyan, the Ulhas and Waldhuni rivers flowed above the danger mark. Many areas on the banks of the rivers in Kalyan, Badlapur, and Ambernath went under water. In Vidarbha, Wardha, Gadchiroli, and parts of Yavatmal experienced a flood-like situation.
The Gadchiroli-Chandrapur-Nagpur highway was shut due to heavy rains, with flood water flowing above bridges in some areas. In Nashik, water levels in Gangapur, Darana and Bhavali increased and discharge was started from Darana and Bhavali.
State Congress president Nana Patole slammed the state government and blamed its policies for the floods. “In the last 10 years, state governments under the BJP-led alliance destroyed natural systems that were useful for draining water, by allowing construction in the name of development. Now, the citizens are paying the price of it,” he said.
With inputs from PTI
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