BMC chief Bhushan Gagrani inspects desilting work; urges public to avoid dumping waste in drains | X – @mybmc
Mumbai: The BMC continues to face a major challenge—despite cleaning the nullahs, people are still dumping garbage into them, undermining efforts to keep the city’s drainage system clear, civic officials complain.
However, Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani has appealed to citizens to avoid throwing garbage into drains and to help prevent blockages, ensuring the smooth and uninterrupted flow of water during the monsoon.
Gagrani inspected desilting work in city and suburbs along with the civic officials on Tuesday. So far, 43% of the pre-monsoon desilting work has been completed. The BMC aims to complete the remaining work within the next month, by May 31. To ensure transparency in the desilting process, all video footage related to the operations is being analysed by the BMC using Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems.
“Although the nullah desilting work is being carried out satisfactorily, residents of nearby settlements continue to throw plastic and other waste materials into the drains. Citizens living along the drains should refrain from dumping solid waste, discarded items, and plastic materials into the drains,” said Gagrani.
In order to control the flow of floodwater, the Storm Water Drainage (SWD) Department has installed flood control valves at certain locations. These valves help reduce water pressure during flood situations, prevent structural damage, and maintain a controlled and safe flow of water.
“When the water pressure or level exceeds a certain threshold, the valves automatically open to release the excess water, thereby protecting infrastructure,” said another official.
As part of its pre-monsoon preparedness, the BMC has appointed 23 contractors to execute desilting operations across both the city and suburbs. The BMC has set a target of removing 9.34 lakh metric tonnes of silt from city nullahs and the Mithi River. The civic body has allocated a budget of Rs 540 crore to be spent over a two-year period.
Mumbai has 215 km of major nullahs, 156 km of minor nullahs, and the 22.25 km-long Mithi River. According to BMC’s guidelines, desilting operations are conducted in three phases annually, with 80% of the silt removed by the end of May.
About 10% is cleared during the monsoon, and the remaining 10% after the season ends. To keep citizens updated, the BMC has made photos and videos available on https://swd.mcgm.gov.in/wms2025, allowing residents to track the progress of desilting in their areas.
