Mumbai’s water stock has significantly increased after recent heavy rainfall

MUMBAI: Continuous rainfall over the past few days has sharply improved Mumbai’s water reserves, with the seven lakes supplying the city witnessing a dramatic rise in storage from less than 10% on July 4 to 41.36% on Wednesday. Tulsi Lake also became the second lake to overflow this monsoon, spilling over at 11.43 pm on Tuesday.The total water stock in the seven reservoirs stood at 5.98 lakh million litres (41.36%) on Wednesday, up from 4.18 lakh million litres (28.92%) on Tuesday—a 12.44 percentage point jump in just 24 hours.Since every 1% of water storage is sufficient to meet Mumbai’s needs for nearly three days, the single-day increase is equivalent to more than a month’s water supply.However, despite the rapid improvement, civic officials said there is no immediate plan to withdraw the 10% water cut currently in force, as the lakes need to reach a combined storage of 14.47 lakh million litres by the end of September to comfortably meet the city’s annual demand.On the same date last year, the seven lakes held 10.30 lakh million litres (71.13%), while on July 8, 2024, storage stood at 2.71 lakh million litres (18.73%).Tulsi Lake, one of Mumbai’s smallest reservoirs located inside Sanjay Gandhi National Park, began overflowing late Tuesday night. Built in 1879, the lake has a live storage capacity of 8,046 million litres and supplies around 18 million litres of water daily. Overflow from Tulsi flows into Vihar Lake, which also began overflowing on Tuesday evening at 9 pm. Mumbai’s daily water demand is about 4,100 million litres (MLD).

Water storage over the past week

Water stock on the same date

The Maharashtra assembly witnessed a debate on heavy rains and their impact.

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Assembly on Wednesday witnessed a brief war of words between Speaker Rahul Narwekar and Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray over the recent heavy rains and whether the destruction caused could be termed an “act of God.”The exchange came after opposition members protested the delay in taking up a discussion on the rain situation, calling it the most urgent issue before the House.Speaker Narwekar said a short-duration discussion on the monsoon situation would be held on Thursday. Referring to the widespread damage, he said climate change was behind the extreme weather and that such events could not be controlled.Aaditya Thackeray countered by asking whether there would also be a discussion on the cutting of mangroves and forests. “Will you say this was an act of God?” he asked, suggesting that environmental degradation had worsened the impact of the rains.Narwekar responded by asking whether Thackeray could control an “act of God.” The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader then raised the issue of the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, triggering heated exchanges between the Opposition and treasury benches.Amid sloganeering from both sides, the Speaker adjourned the House for five minutes.Maharashtra has witnessed heavy rainfall over the past few days, with Mumbai and several other parts of the state reporting tree falls, waterlogging, fatalities, and disruption to road, rail and air services. (With PTI inputs)

Police said Shiv Sena corporator Ramesh Mhatre will be arrested for assaulting hospital staff.

KALYAN: Police on Wednesday said Shiv Sena corporator Ramesh Mhatre, named in the FIR for the assault on doctors and medical staff at the KDMC-run Shastri Nagar Hospital in Dombivli, will also be arrested.Assistant Commissioner of Police Suhas Hemade said the investigation was progressing and assured the medical fraternity that no accused would be spared. “The corporator will also be arrested. No accused in the case will be spared,” he said.So far, Vishnu Nagar police have arrested three accused — Akshay Karande, Ramesh Pawar and Pramod Nikam — all alleged associates of Mhatre. Police said efforts were underway to arrest the remaining accused named in the FIR.The case was registered on the complaint of doctor Vaibhav Salunkhe after a group allegedly assaulted doctors and nursing staff following a dispute over the treatment of a patient at Shastri Nagar Hospital. The accused have been booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Maharashtra Medicare Service Persons and Medicare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage or Loss to Property) Act, 2010.The incident sparked protests by doctors across Kalyan-Dombivli, with routine outpatient services suspended while emergency care continued. Medical associations have demanded the immediate arrest of all those involved, including Mhatre, and strict enforcement of laws protecting healthcare workers.Opposition leaders, including Aaditya Thackeray and NCP (SP) leader Rohit Pawar, also sought action against the corporator.Meanwhile, Kalyan MP Dr. Shrikant Shinde condemned the assault, saying no one who takes the law into their own hands would be spared. The Shiv Sena leader, who is also a medical practitioner, said the party would not shield anyone involved in the attack and assured strict legal action against all those found guilty.

MUMBAI: A 50-year-old man from Virar suffered a head injury after a tree branch broke and fell on him during heavy wind and rain in Andheri (East), police said.The incident occurred at around 8.50 am when Aadesh Gaikar was riding his motorcycle from Virar to his workplace in Andheri, police said.People who witnessed the incident, along with police personnel, rushed Gaikar to Cooper Hospital, where he is undergoing treatment for his head injury.“Doctors at the hospital said Gaikar’s condition is stable and he is out of danger,” a police officer said.Police said Gaikar was riding his motorcycle to his office in Mogarpada, Andheri (East), when the tree branch broke and fell on his head.“As the Andheri One Mobile police team was patrolling the area, he was immediately taken to the hospital for medical treatment,” the officer added.

Responding to the controversy, Mhatre said he had not raised his hand against the doctor and attributed the impression created by the CCTV footage to the camera angle.

MUMBAI: Shiv Sena corporator Ramesh Mhatre on Wednesday expressed regret over the altercation at a civic-run hospital in Dombivli, while denying allegations that he assaulted a female doctor during the incident.Responding to the controversy, Mhatre said he had not raised his hand against the doctor and attributed the impression created by the CCTV footage to the camera angle.“I regret the physical altercation that took place. I state with full confidence that I did not raise my hand against the female doctor. What appears in the CCTV footage might look that way due to the camera angle,” he said.Mhatre said he addressed the doctor informally because he considered her “like a daughter” and claimed that while they were speaking, she continued talking on the phone and was not listening to their grievance.“I tapped her hand. We have been guided by Balasaheb’s teachings; we have never raised a hand against women, nor will we ever do so in the future,” he said.He further said the incident occurred due to “systemic shortcomings” in the hospital and added that efforts would be made to address them.Mhatre also said the people who had taken him to the hospital could provide more details about the incident. He claimed the person who had called him to the spot did not answer his subsequent calls and that he reached the hospital after realising the seriousness of the situation.A case has been registered against Mhatre and five others in connection with the alleged assault on two doctors at the KDMC-run Shastri Nagar Hospital in Kalyan.The incident sparked protests by doctors and medical staff, who demanded immediate action against the accused.(With inputs from ANI)

Image Used For Representational Purpose Only

MUMBAI: An Air India flight from Mumbai to Delhi on Tuesday aborted its take-off run as an Air India Express aircraft that had landed seconds ago was still on the runway, said an aviation source.The incident occurred around 9.40 pm when Air India flight AI 816 to Delhi entered the runway 27 of Mumbai airport to begin its take-off run.Air India Express flight from Bagdogra IX 1547 had just landed on the same runway, said an aviation source. “The crew discontinued the take-off run after receiving an instruction from the Air Traffic Control (ATC) and returned to the bay,” said an Air India spokesperson. The aircraft will undergo mandatory checks in accordance with standard operating procedures, he added.Sources said the Air India Express aircraft, which had arrived from Siliguri, had not yet vacated the runway when the Delhi-bound Air India flight began preparing for take-off from the same runway.The Air India flight, AI816, was scheduled to operate with a wide-body Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, while Air India Express flight AIX1547 was operated with a Boeing 737 MAX 8, according to the sources.In a statement, an Air India spokesperson confirmed that the take-off was aborted on the instructions of air traffic control but did not provide further details.“The crew operating flight AI816 from Mumbai to Delhi on July 7 discontinued the take-off run after receiving an instruction to do so from the Air Traffic Control and returned to the bay,” the Air India spokesperson said in the statement.The spokesperson added, “The aircraft would undergo necessary checks as per standard operating procedures,” adding that “an alternative arrangement was being made to fly the passengers to their destination at the earliest.”

Mumbai recorded its wettest July days in recent years with intense downpours.

MUMBAI: Mumbai received as much rain between June 30 and July 6 as several major metros typically do in an entire year.IMD’s Colaba observatory recorded 882. 6mm of rain and Santacruz 988. 8mm during the seven-day period, surpassing the average annual rainfall of Delhi and Pune and nearly matching Bengaluru’s yearly total.For perspective, Delhi’s average annual rainfall is around 774mm, meaning Colaba received the equivalent of 113% of the national capital’s yearly rainfall in just a week.The rainfall also exceeded Pune’s annual average of 720mm and nearly matched Bengaluru’s 986mm. The heaviest rainfall was recorded on July 4, when Colaba logged 265. 6mm and Santacruz 227. 7mm in 24 hours, making it one of the city’s wettest July days in recent years.Municipal commissioner Ashwini Bhide said the heavy rain was accompanied by sustained winds of 40-50 kmph, with gusts reaching 70-80 kmph in some parts of the city.She said all six pumping stations and 10 mini pumping stations were operational, while dewatering pumps were deployed wherever required to clear waterlogged stretches.Bhide said the civic administration came across media reports showing waterlogging at certain locations, including outside actor Amitabh Bachchan’s residence, but maintained they did not reflect the actual situation on the ground.“We were monitoring these locations live through the disaster control room, and the reports did not match the real-time conditions at the site,” she said.The rain intensity eased on Tuesday, prompting the IMD to downgrade its warning for Mumbai from an orange alert to yellow. Between 8. 30am and 5. 30pm, Colaba recorded 0. 7mm of rainfall and Santacruz 6. 1mm. Moderate rainfall is expected over the next few days.

Mumbai: A six-feet-long Indian marsh crocodile was noticed under parked cars, near Chand Shah Wali Dargah, close to Powai lake and Vihar lake, on Tuesday.A team of forest officials assisted by Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW) and SARRP (Spreading Awareness on Reptiles and Rehabilitation Program), rescued the crocodile.“It is believed that the marsh crocodile drifted towards land during heavy rains, and later could not find its way back towards the lake,” said Pawan Sharma of RAWW.Social activist, Intekhab Farooqui, chairperson of Amma Foundation and state vice president of Vahtuk Sena (UBT faction), commented: “It is rather unusual for an adult crocodile to travel this far into land, near the dargah. Some of the local residents asserted that the crocodile may have come here from the waterbody next to NEET institute, Vihar lake.”Nobody was hurt in this incident. The crocodile was examined by Dr Priti Sathe, associate veterinarian with RAWW, as per the wildlife protocols.Once declared fit, it will be released back to its natural habitat by the officials. A few environmentalists have also expressed concern that the natural basking spots of the crocodiles, besides the egg laying areas along the two lakes of Powai and Vihar are being disturbed due to developmental activities. This must be stopped, or it may lead to more cases of crocodiles encountering human beings.