Rain, flooding: alarm bells sound for Vasai-Virar

Nestled along the Arabian Sea on one side and the majestic Sahyadri ranges on the other sides, Vasai is a unique place in Maharashtra.

In between passes the Western Railway line and the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Highway – with four busy station-localities on the way – Naigaum, Vasai, Nalasopara and Virar, over a stretch of nearly 10 kms, and thence into Palghar district that touches the Gujarat border.

In many respects, Vasai could well be one among the first planned modern cities that can claim to have a history and heritage of over 500 years, as well. Vasai’s history is older than that of Bombay, now Mumbai, or rather, the modern history of Mumbai started from Vasai or Bassein.

The city is located on the north bank of Vasai Creek, part of the estuary of the Ulhas River and settled next to the Tungareshwar Wildlife Sanctuary. Located 50-60 km from downtown Mumbai, Vasai has tehsil (or taluk), a Gram Panchayat, and there is also the Vasai-Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC). And it is part of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). The population – estimated to be 13-15 lakh – makes it the fastest growing Mumbai suburbs. There is a large floating population as well, and the pressure on infrastructure is high.

When the 7-11 July heavy pounding of rains and the resultant deluge occurred in the Vasai-Virar belt, there were more questions than answers. From July 6-13, this MMR region saw rainfall between 600 to 800 mm.

In the past, too, MMR had seen several floods, including on July 26, 2005, but the accumulated water had flowed out. This time around, water stayed for nearly three days. The floods have resulted in power outage ranging from 36 to 40 hours, and disruption of water supply for nearly two days. It led to a major traffic mess and threat of water-borne diseases.

To dwell further, one has to first understand what Vasai is. In fact, Vasai is a unique tehsil – it has sea on one side, it has a fishing community, it has salt-pans, agriculture zone, it has multiple townships, it has an industrial zone and also a forest zone. All these, spread over 380 sq km.

“This has never happened in Vasai before,” says Chinmay Gavankar, who founded Vasai First, a collective of NGOs. “There were rains and flooding, people were stranded, there was traffic mess, there were problems of power supply, water supply and, on top of it, (phone) networks were jammed.”

“We have to look at the issue with a perspective,” says veteran activist Sameer Vartak, president of Paryavaran Samvardhan Samiti, Vasai-Virar. “Over the last two decades, the natural outlets for water have been closed. On one side is the Arabian Sea and on the other are the Sahyadri range hills and jungles,” he said, adding that the flooding of tracks along the Nalasopara station clearly showed that the water could not flow out. “Planning is a major issue here, buildings have mushroomed.”

The politics of Vasai is controlled by Hitendra Thakur-led Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA). Thakur and his son Kshitij Thakur represent the Vasai and Nalasopara constituencies in the Maharashtra assembly. The BVA also controls the VVCMC. “There are geographical reasons, topographical reasons as well as the excessive rains, coupled with high tide,” Thakur was quoted as saying.

“I have been here for over two decades. I have seen several rains and floods that the MMR experienced. But none like this,” said Gautam Chatterjee, the secretary of Pragati, a socio-cultural welfare association.

A visit to the Vasai Fort, which is under the control of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), reveals how the foundation of the planned fort-city was laid and how it changed hands from the Gujarat Sultans to the Portuguese to the Marathas and then to the British, and how planning has gone with each change. Post-Independence, particularly in the last three decades, there has been a real estate boom as well as a population explosion. In fact, the Nalasopara station accounts for maximum ticket sales in Mumbai’s suburban railway network.

‘Heavy development’

“Vasai is like ‘mini Goa’ but it has seen heavy development over the years,” says Kiran Bhoir, director of KMC Holidays and Offshore, adding that the flora and fauna can rarely be matched by any other tehsil-town in India.

Vasai also is an industrial hub, one of the largest in Maharashtra, spread over Navghar, Gokhivare, Waliv, Sativali and Gauraipada. “There are over 12,000 units, mostly MSMEs. It directly and indirectly employs three to four lakh people,” says Gowalis Industrial Association vice president Ashok Colaco.

The Vasai-Virar region will be seeing more ‘development’, thanks to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). This include the ambitious 126-km long Virar-Alibaug Multi-Modal Corridor, which will connect NH-8, Bhiwandi bypass, NH-3, NH-4 and NH-4B, Mumbai-Pune Expressway, NH-17 and Jawaharlal Nehru Port. There are also plans for a coastal road from Mumbai till Virar and Metro rail in Vasai-Virar. A growth centre of 1,560 acres has been planned, essentially on salt pans and wetlands, which is already facing stiff opposition.

The draft MMR Plan 2016-2036 promises residential townships, a healthcare city, education centre, sports complex, entertainment hubs and so on.

“This unplanned development needs to be checked. Otherwise in times to come, the 2018 rains and deluge will multiply manifold. At that stage, we will be at a point of no return,” added Vartak, pointing out that the city’s infrastructure needs to be upgraded.

The Western Railway administration, on its part, is taking up measures to ensure that the tracks along Nalasopara do not get flooded next year.

The rains and flooding of 2018 have already sounded alarm bells for Vasai-Virar!