Mumbai: Video shows 2 women falling into manhole, BMC scrambles to fix pits

The women could not see the manhole as the street was flooded. To their good fortune, it was not very deep

As the BMC drew severe flak over flooded streets in the city on Tuesday, it received more brickbats after a video of two women falling into a manhole went viral on social media. While the scene brought back the memories of the tragic manhole death of Dr Deepak Amarapurkar in 2017, the women were fortunate enough to extricate themselves without any apparent injuries.

Jolted by the video, the civic body has begun inspecting the city's open manholes yet again. BMC officials also urged citizens to not open manholes during heavy rain, saying it will lead to accidents.

The viral video, believed to be from Bhandup, showed two women falling into an open drain pit on a waterlogged road. To their good luck, the manhole was not deep enough and the women managed to walk away. However, the visual angered social media users who heaped scorn on the civic body for shoddy work.

The corporation said the manhole cover at the Village road in Bhandup, where the incident apparently took place, has been fixed. It said ward offices have again been asked to cover open manholes on a war footing.

Corporators said the civic body had taken a host of steps after Dr Amarapurkar's death, but lapses continue on the ground.