Mumbai stranded, choppers to rescue

As it continued to pour in Mumbai on Wednesday, the commercial capital of India remained cut off from the rest of the world for the second d...

As it continued to pour in Mumbai on Wednesday, the commercial capital of India remained cut off from the rest of the world for the second day. No plane landed or took off, no train moved and no one drove in. The situation in the districts of Maharashta was worse. At least 99 people were reported dead, including 69 in Mumbai and its suburbs alone.

At a press conference, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh chose to blame only the rain for the flooding and said the drainage system was not at fault. He said Mumbai’s drains were capable of carrying 25 mm of rainwater in an hour, while it has rained much more than that in the past two days.

Santacruz has recorded 995 mm of rainfall in 24 hours, the highest that the city has ever experienced, Deshmukh said.

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Hundreds of people were stranded in the city and the Army and Navy had to be called in for rescue operations. Two helicopters were used in Thane and Mumbai each, while Naval boats were sent to the Bandra Kurla Complex.

Over 5,000 Army jawans have been deployed and platoons of Central Reserve Police Force personnel have also been kept ready. But the rains have to stop for rescue operations to be successful, Deshmukh said. The total loss so far due to the unprecedented rainfall has been pegged at Rs 500 crore, he added.

As many as 50 people were feared dead in a landslide in Sakinaka. Twenty-two bodies have been taken out so far, he said. There was a landslide in Navi Mumbai near the London Pilsner company, in which 12 people have died and 18 were injured. A landslide has killed seven in Thane.

Deshmukh feared that the 150 people stuck under a landslide at Jui in Raigad were dead by now.

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He said 10,000 people in Mumbai alone have been moved to safer places. Similarly, 12,000 people from Ulhasnagar, Thane, Badlapur and Bhiwandi have been evacuated. Twelve thousand people in Nanded, 5,000 in Ratnagiri and 6,000 in Thane have been also shifted.

A public holiday has been declared tomorrow with the Met department warning of more rains in the next 48 hours. The CM has requested people not to move out of their houses. He said only vehicles carrying essential commodities like vegetables and milk would be allowed inside the city and other vehicles would be requested to stay away.

Meanwhile, 21 villages in Nanded were still under water. The Vishnupuri dam crossed the danger level and 12,000 people have been moved to safer places. Water from this dam is being released into neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, the CM said. The Godavari was also flowing above the danger mark.

PM may undertake aerial survey today

NEW DELHI

: PM Manmohan Singh is likely to undertake an aerial survey of flood-hit Maharashtra on Thursday. He has assured Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh of all possible help. A delegation led by Shiv Sena MP Anant Geete met the PM earlier, demanding a grant of Rs 5,000 crore from the PM’s relief fund for the flood-hit areas. The PM told them that he has asked Union ministers Shivraj Patil and Sharad Pawar to stay in touch with the state government, and ensure speedy relief. Pawar has already left for a four-day tour of the affected areas in Konkan.