Mumbai rains: Situation under control, says BMC chief

BMC Commissioner called rainfall unprecedented and added that water levels are kept under check

A day after heavy rains and severe flooding in Mumbai after parts of the city received as much as 300 mm of rainfall, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Commissioner Ajoy Mehta on Wednesday said that such "unprecedented situation" was much mitigated and are much under control.

Addressing the media, the BMC Commissioner called the rainfall "unprecedented" and added that the water levels are kept "under check" and are reseeding quickly.

He also claimed that as many 30,000 employees of the BMC were present on the streets to help in tackling the situation.

"The quantum of rainfall was extremely high. We had 325 mm of rainfall and there were almost 26 locations where the rainfall exceeded 250mm. So, it was one of the highest unprecedented rainfalls. More than that there are two things we need to see that how fast Mumbai came back to normal which was really unprecedented, it was something that was beyond the infrastructure of Mumbai," he said.

The commissioner lauded the coordination among the various agencies and the people of Mumbai in order to effectively tackle the flood situation.

"I have to give credit to the people, to the employees and officers of the corporation and all other people like the police, the BST and brought Mumbai back on its feet," he added.

Meanwhile, speaking on the mitigation measures taken post the Mumbai floods, Sanjay Kumar, Directorate General, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said that 10 of their teams are on standby in the city and ready to be deployed, if need arises.

In light of the past experiences, three NDRF teams had been prepositioned in Mumbai at strategic locations, the DG informed.

Further, two of their teams were deployed after yesterday's weather forecast, and five additional teams were rushed from their battalion headquarters in view of water logging, heavy rains and high tide situations.

"Those ten teams are still on standby in Mumbai watching the situation, and as per requirement and in consultation with local authorities, we'll further review the situation and deploy it ( NDRF teams), and if need be, any operation can also be carried out," Kumar told ANI.

He also added that the teams are fully equipped to carry out operations in heavy rains, flood-like situations, in water-logged areas and even during night time.

Meanwhile, the heavy flooding that disrupted the daily life of Mumbaikars, put a break to local greengrocers' business.

A day after the flash flood, the otherwise busy vegetable market of Dadar was deserted as the sellers sat awaiting customers.

However, the Deputy Director General (DDG) India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said that the rain has reduced in the past 8 to 10 hours and the situation is likely to be the same for a few hours more.