Mumbai: Vasai’s Chulne village battles rain and civic body’s apathy

Residents of Chulne village seen wading through a water-logged stretch

For the last 23 years, residents of Chulne village in Vasai West have had to contend with rainwater seeping into their homes. This year was no different, with several bungalows facing water-logging due to the continuous downpour. Locals have lashed out at the civic body for not being able to find a resolution to the problem yet.

According to resident Sebastian Assao, the village is home to nearly 400 bungalows. "Several residents have taken bank loans worth lakhs of rupees, to reconstruct their residential complexes to prevent rainwater from entering their houses," he said, "Despite our best efforts, we experience water-logging each year."

Every monsoon, Assao and his family vacate the ground floor of their home. His father, who is bed-ridden, has been shifted to the first floor. "If you look at my bungalow, it seems like I have constructed my house in the middle of a river."

Civic activist Tyson D'costa's family took a bank loan to rebuild their home. "In 2018, there was waist-high water level inside my house," said Tyson. "My father then demolished our structure, and built a new one at a height. We hoped that we would not face the flooding issue, but nothing has changed."

According to Assao, the lack of a proper drainage system is responsible for the water-logging. Illegal and unauthorised construction on natural water channels is the other reason. "But the civic body seems to be sleeping. No official from the municipal corporation has visited us to see what conditions we are living in."

Meanwhile, Fatima Mata Convent Children's Home in Chulne, which is home to underprivileged children from Dahanu, Wada, Vikramgarh, Mira Road, and Arnala, is also inundated. "There is a dispensary on the ground floor of this facility, where local residents come for medical treatment. But as the ground floor is fully submerged in rainwater, operations in the medical facility has been suspended," said Loretto Dias, who is in-charge of the children's home.

Sebastian Assao outside his home, which is among the bungalows that were submerged. Pics/Hanif Patel

According to her, the facility has been operational since 1967, but has been facing water-logging since the year 2000.

The principal of St Joseph High School and Jr College Nandakhal in Vasai, Father Joe Almeida, told mid-day that many educational facilities have been shut for the last few days, due to the flooding situation in the area. "The municipal corporation and the disaster management team of Vasai-Virar have failed us," he said.

Anilkumar Pawar, commissioner of Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC) did not respond to mid-day.