BMC Proposes 40% Reduction in Mithi River Desilting Ahead of Monsoon Season
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has put forward a significant proposal to reduce the desilting of the flood-prone Mithi River by nearly 40% for the upcoming monsoon period. This decision follows an assessment indicating that Mumbai can prevent major flooding with substantially less work than previously estimated.
Sharp Decline in Desilting Targets and Contract Values
During the past weekend, the civic body issued a fresh tender for desilting 1.65 lakh tons of silt from the Mithi River. This represents a steep reduction from the 2.67 lakh tons targeted last year. Consequently, the contract value has been nearly halved, dropping from Rs 48 crore to Rs 29.5 crore.
The official BMC explanation for this reduction hinges on last year's monsoon experience. "Despite desilting being disrupted after contractors abandoned sites midway amid an Economic Offences Wing probe, the city escaped major flooding last year," stated a BMC official. However, the official added that the quantity to be desilted would be reviewed if there is scope to undertake more work.
Additional civic chief Abhijit Bangar emphasized, "This is only a benchmark of the quantum set and if need be, for more silt to be removed, the same will be reviewed at a later stage."
Apprehensions Over Contractor Participation and Political Scrutiny
There are growing apprehensions about whether contractors will come forward to bid for the reduced desilting work this time. Officials pointed out that after contractors abandoned work last year, no fresh bidders from Mumbai, Thane, or Navi Mumbai were willing to take up the remaining desilting tasks.
Another official acknowledged that desilting activities have increasingly become politicized, attracting heightened scrutiny. With elected representatives now in place, officials anticipate that the pressure surrounding execution will be even more intense during this monsoon season.
Background of Contract Disruptions and Corruption Cases
Desilting of the Mithi River is typically carried out in three phases each year, alongside the cleaning of major and minor nullahs. Last year, of the three companies awarded a two-year contract, two failed to complete the work after becoming embroiled in corruption cases. This situation was exacerbated by the arrests of contractors and civic officials.
The BMC foreclosed the contract, blacklisted all three firms, and terminated their agreements, leaving the river-cleaning exercise in a state of limbo. This appraisal comes in the wake of a probe against contractors and civic officials that examined allegations of inflated work orders.
Opposition Criticism and Calls for Departmental Execution
Opposition parties argue that this development immediately casts a shadow over the credibility of desilting carried out in recent years. "If Mumbai could tide over the monsoon with significantly reduced desilting, it raises the possibility that earlier silt estimates may have been inflated," said Samajwadi Party MLA Rais Shaikh, who served as a BMC corporator from 2012 to 2022.
Shaikh further suggested, "BMC now shouldn't wait for contractors but get the work departmentally done by hiring only the manpower and machinery required." This statement underscores the growing skepticism about the transparency and efficiency of the desilting process.
The reduction in both the scale and cost of desilting the Mithi River, while based on last year's experience, has sparked significant concerns. If contractors do not submit bids—given that those previously selected abandoned the work last year—there are fears that no new bidders will be willing to take up the remaining desilting tasks, potentially compromising Mumbai's flood preparedness.
