Mumbai: BMC plans annual desilting of city nullahs

Representation Pic

Ahead of the monsoon, the BMC is preparing for the desilting of choked nullahs so the drainage of excess rainwater to the sea can occur without hindrance. The cost of removing silt from these nullahs is approximately Rs 2 per kg or Rs 2,000 per metric tonne. In 2024, the corporation aims to remove over 13.10 lakh tonnes of silt from major and minor nullahs as well as the Mithi river at the cost of Rs 249 crore.

Though the BMC uses the term desilting, the city's water drains are choked with garbage - large amounts of plastic, cloth and wooden items. The corporation has appointed 31 agencies to achieve 75 per cent desilting before May 31; three for south city, 10 for the eastern suburbs, 15 for the western suburbs and three for the Mithi river. Fifteen per cent of the nullah cleaning will happen during the monsoon, and 10 per cent after the season ends.

"The experience of past decades shows that desilting of 10 lakh tonnes is enough to clean drains in preparation for the monsoon," said an official from the Storm Water Drain department. There are 309 major drains in Mumbai, including three rivers with an approximate total length of 290 km. The city has roughly 2,500 km of minor nullahs, including 475 km of century-old underground stormwater arch drains.

309
No of major drains in Mumbai