Chief Minister Minister Eknath Shinde paid a surprise visit to BMC headquarters to take stock of monsoon preparations following heavy rainfall on Wednesday.
The CM's colleagues Deepak Kesarkar, Dada Bhuse, Girish Mahajan and Shambhuraj Desai accompanied him. Additional Municipal Commissioner P Velrasu, Additional Commissioner Sudhakar Shinde and Chief Officer at the Disaster Management Unit Mahesh Narvekar told the CM about the steps being taken to help citizens.
Shinde said state transport and BEST buses had been provided outside railways stations to take people home. Snacks were also being distributed outside stations, he said.
All schools in Mumbai, Thane, Raigad and Palghar districts will be closed today, the chief minister announced.
Shinde said he had spoken with all divisional commissioners and collectors of Panvel and Navi Mumbai and instructed them to send help to Raigad. Some parts of district were badly hit due to the rainfall. Shinde claimed that Mumbai had 110 low-lying areas, but there was no waterlogging in the city and traffic was smooth.
The CM urged citizens of Maharashtra not to go near the seashores and picnic spots during heavy rains.
