Whenever we hear 26 July, only one thing comes to our mind and that is the 2005 Mumbai Floods. The day that Mumbaikars can never forget. The day when the most happening city was standing still, watching people die, people losing their loved ones, their homes, everything, everyone was underwater. Even after 17 years, chills go down the spine and my heart aches.
Mumbai has always seen a full-fledged Monsoon. Mumbai rains are always in the news, and Mumbai roads are always jam-packed during monsoons. But 26th July was something different,.The floods were caused by the eighth heaviest-ever recorded 24-hour rainfall figure of 944 mm (37.17 inches) which lashed the metropolis on 26 July 2005, and intermittently continued for the next day. 644mm (25.35 inches) was received within the 12-hour period between 8 am and 8 pm. Torrential rainfall continued for the next week.
On 26th July 2005 at 2:00 in Mumbai, it started heavily raining. People were still at their work, kids were at school. Everyone was relaxed as they were very much familiar with Mumbai rains. Little did they think that this time it is different and their rain strokes will change their lives in just a few hours. The intensity of rains started increasing. By the time it was evening, it was heavily raining, roads were flooded and people were clueless about how to reach back home?
Some stayed at their office that night. Many of them were safe. However some because of the care and worry about the family, decided to go back home. Some walked miles and miles to reach back home. Local trains were canceled. Public transport was shut. There were only people on the streets, trying to help each other in the huge flow of water on the roads. Some lost their vehicles, some lost their homes, and most painful, some lost their lives and loved ones in that rain.
It was like never before. Horrifying, terrifying. It was like God is angry and will not leave any living being in those horrible rains. People anticipated the rain will stop the next day but again it didn't happen. And It rained almost 644mm the next day.
What was the reason for this tragedy?
Development in certain parts of Mumbai is haphazard and buildings are constructed without proper planning. The drainage plans in northern suburbs are chalked out as and when required in a particular area and not from an overall point of view.
The Environment Ministry of the Government of India was informed in the early 1990s that sanctioning the Bandra-Kurla complex (a commercial complex in northern Mumbai) was leading to disaster. No environment clearance is mandatory for large urban construction projects in northern Mumbai. Officials in the environment ministry claimed that it was not practical to impose new guidelines with retrospective effect "as there are millions of buildings".
These millions of buildings took the life of thousands of people that day, and still, there are ongoing constructions in Mumbai. People are still into uncontrolled unplanned development. Are we inviting another chapter of this disaster? We need to think about that.
Here are some visuals that may disturb you. But we have to look at them so that we never repeat the mistake and invite another disaster like this :
