With the monsoon setting in early this year, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) announced Wednesday that 82.31 per cent of this season's pre-monsoon silt removal work has been completed across Mumbai's major and minor drains. However, desilting of the Mithi River, a key component in the city's flood-prevention system, remains a challenge both due to early rains and ongoing investigations into a Rs 65 crore scam.
According to the BMC, 7.96 lakh metric tons of silt has been removed against the target of 9.68 lakh metric tons, with work ongoing in various areas.
Notably, 105.81 per cent of the target for major nullahs has been completed, while 72.18 per cent of desilting work on smaller drains has been done. The Mithi River, however, lags with only 61.85 per cent of its desilting target achieved.
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Desilting of the Mithi River began in March, as in previous years, but the early arrival of rain in May - marking record rainfall for the month - hampered progress. Despite this, BMC says additional manpower and machinery have been deployed to accelerate the work, particularly in areas critical for urban drainage.
"We've already completed work on all major drains and are now focusing fully on the Mithi River, which is key to preventing flooding in the city. The delays are being addressed with increased deployment on the ground," said a senior BMC official. "Artificial Intelligence (AI) monitoring has helped us identify inefficiencies and fine contractors over Rs 3 crore for non-compliance."
But the Mithi's slow progress is also rooted in deeper issues. The desilting project has been at the centre of a high-profile corruption probe, with the Economic Offences Wing uncovering fraudulent billing, fake contracts, and front companies allegedly used by BMC officials and contractors to siphon funds. In some cases, fake desilting was reported, with machinery shown on video but not deployed at the site.
Besides, alternative contractors are reluctant to take over the Mithi River desilting due to its tainted history, forcing the BMC to rely on firms already under investigation. This has raised concerns about transparency and efficacy, despite the civic body's assurances of improved monitoring.
To ensure better accountability, the BMC has made 30-second video documentation mandatory for each desilting operation, with before-and-after footage verified using AI tools. Desilting efforts will continue during and after the monsoon to further improve drainage and river capacity, said the civic body.
With the next few weeks critical, all eyes are now on the Mithi-both for its flood-carrying capacity and for what the unfolding investigation reveals about long-standing issues in Mumbai's civic contracts.
