Every single manhole in the city should be covered

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The Bombay High Court has asked the BMC to consider covering all manholes in Mumbai with protective grills to prevent accidents.

A division bench of acting Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Sandeep Marne noted that in 2018 the Bombay HC had directed the civic body that some mechanism be developed to ensure manholes are not left open. The court had then also suggested that preventive grills be installed over manholes.

The judges noted that of the 74,682 manholes in the city, only 1,908 have been fitted with protective grills. The high court order is of 2018.

Five years have gone by and we have less than 10 per cent manholes covered with protective grills the bench noted, the reports cited. A senior Mumbai gastroenterologist had fallen into an open manhole negotiating a flooded road in 2017, and drowned.

We must have protective non-movable (with the exception of authorised BMC personnel) grills for manholes across. The corporation cannot take the route that these grills are only installed in flood-prone areas. What exactly is flood-prone? Yet another monsoon, and some area which was not previously known to be waterlogged can become flood-prone too.

Open manholes are definitely more hazardous in the rain, but that does not mean somebody cannot fall into a manhole when there is no rain. An accident, some pushing and shoving on our pavements and roads, slipping on some object and there is every possibility that you may fall in if you are not careful. Even today's tendency of texting and talking while walking may result in a dangerous fall.

It is important that all manholes are covered and unfathomable why this has not happened yet.

With all the infra progress, why is attention not paid to basics? Let those responsible get the grills done in double-quick time.