‘Footpaths have become pav bhaji stands’, why did the High Court say this on Mumbai floods?

Rain in Maharashtra’s capital Mumbai has increased the problems of common people. It has become difficult for people to go out on the streets. Everywhere is filled with water, schools, shops and offices are closed. Now the Bombay High Court has said that Mumbai’s flood problem is not just the fault of BMC, but it is a problem of our own making.

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday said the city is being flooded with rain water due to encroachment, clogging of drains and misuse of footpaths. According to a report in Hindustan Times, the court termed this inconvenience as illegal occupation of the roads and said that the intention of the people is to loot their own motherland.

Also read: Is disaster coming in the next 48 hours? Rain alert issued from Mumbai to Haryana

Bombay High Court:-
We convert footpaths into pav bhaji stalls. We have a habit of looting our motherland ourselves. In a short rain the roads are closed. All these are things of our own making.

Why has Bombay High Court said this?

The court was hearing a case regarding road widening at Mandala village on Sion-Trombay road. BMC told the court that they have removed encroachments on 30 feet of the road on their side and have also cut 192 trees.

BMC has said that now the additional land is with the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) to widen the road by 50 feet. BMC said that they are ready to widen the road if they get land. The High Court has issued a notice to DAE in this matter.

Also read: Rain of disaster in Mumbai! Orders to close schools and colleges on Monday

What is the condition of Mumbai?

After two days of continuous heavy rain in Mumbai, there was some relief on Tuesday. Rainfall in the city subsided, with roads and most public transport services gradually returning to normal. From 8 am to 8 pm, the city received an average of 22.39 mm rainfall. Western Railways local train services were stopped again on Tuesday evening due to waterlogging on the tracks between Vasai and Virar.

These services were started in the morning, but the problem increased due to rain again. Central Railway services are running, but there are delays on some routes. Due to heavy rains in the last two days, many places in Mumbai are flooded. Traffic is badly affected.