Urban News

Newsline had reported about the incomplete and dissatisfactory work at Sheikh Mistry nullah at Antop Hill, Islampura nullah at Chembur, Mankhurd station nullah, Dahanukarwadi nullah at Poisar and nullahs at the Gorai creek. BMC revisited these nullahs and cleaned them. The Mankhurd station nullah, which the residents claimed had not been cleaned earlier, was completely cleared of silt and floating material.

The banks of the Islampura nullah that was partially cleaned were dumped with the removed silt. However, on June 7, the silt from the banks was transported, according to BMC officials. Officials also admitted that the upstream nullahs of Gorai creek were still being desilted and the work will be completed within two days. The CEM India nullah is an untrained pond-like nullah which overflows and floods the nearby central government quarters annually during monsoons. BMC assured that the work on training the nullah has started and the floating material will be removed regularly by BMC workers.

Meanwhile, Member of Parliament Sanjay Nirupam found the work unsatisfactory during his visit to six nullahs in Dahisar, Kandivali and Borivali areas on Thursday.

The spots visited include NL Complex Nullah (Dahisar East), Chandavarkar Nullah (Borivali West), Mhatre Nullah ( Rajendra Nagar Borivali), Poisar nullah (Dahanukarwadi), Poisar nullah (S V Road). 

The NL Complex nullah, which starts from Dahisar east near Sanjay Gandhi National Park and flows into the Mira Bhayander creek, is still not cleaned properly. “In case of high tide, there are chances that water might go backwards and flood some areas, instead of flowing into the sea,” admitted a BMC official.

“The work at the Dahisar river nullah was yet not complete. It seems that all the focus is on the Mithi river nullahs as it comes under BRIMSTOWAD,” said Sanjay Nirupam. “At many nullahs the parapet walls have not been built,” he added. The nullahs of Dahisar river, Chandavarkar nullah did not have proper parapet wall causing flooding during heavy rains. “Lack of funds are one of the reason that parapet walls have not been built at some nullahs,” said Chandrakant Watave, Chief Engineer of the BMC’s Storm Water Drains department.

At the Poisar river nullah in Kandivali West, a bridge above the nullah was broken, but a new one has not yet been constructed. The bridge which is proposed to be 6 foot long will be built by next monsoon, said an official. At Iraniwadi in Kandivali West, although the Poisar river nullah has been cleaned once, the foot over bridge built over the nullah has been broken and the silt has not yet been picked up. “There is a fight going on between BMC and bridge department on who will lift the silt,” said a local corporator”.

At the Poisar nullah at SV Road, the widening work has not been done due to the slums adjoining the nullah. “If need be, the slums should be demolished and the nullah widened,” said Nirupam. If the slum residents are eligible then they should be given alternate housing also, he added. The BMC officials have assured that they are prepared to tackle the situation in case of 50 mm per hour rains, in all the areas visited today. There will be no danger of flooding, said Watave. But if it rains more than 50 mm per hour along with high tides then flooding can happen, he added