Early monsoon caught BMC by surprise: Shinde; MVA slams govt

Opposition targets Mahayuti govt over controlling the BMC from Mantralaya Yogesh Naik and Saurabh Kulshrestha [e-mail]

- Yogesh Naik and Saurabh Kulshrestha

MUMBAI: Faced with criticism for the floods in Mumbai, deputy CM Eknath Shinde admitted that the early arrival of the monsoon had caught the BMC by surprise. Shinde, who heads the urban development department which has been running the BMC for three years in the absence of an elected body, also accepted that the dewatering pumps (used for pumping out flood water) were not working to full capacity.

Following the floods at several places, Shinde visited the BMC control room on Monday and blamed the situation on the monsoon's arrival 15 days earlier than expected and the significant amount of rain. "It has not rained so much in the last 30 to 35 years," he said, adding that the rainfall was 250 mm in some areas. "The situation is equivalent to a cloudburst. But all the water in the affected places has now receded." The deputy CM added that the state government had held meetings with all agencies for pre-monsoon preparedness but the rain put paid to their plans.