Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has directed Mumbai’s metro and monorail operators to prepare comprehensive emergency management plans and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). The directive follows a review meeting on disaster preparedness, aimed at reinforcing coordination across the city’s expanding urban transport systems.
The decision comes in the wake of the August 19 monorail breakdown near Bhakti Park in Chembur, where passengers were stranded for hours due to a technical fault. The incident highlighted the urgent need for updated and practical disaster management frameworks for mass transit systems in India’s financial capital. Officials from the Mumbai Suburban District Disaster Management Authority emphasised that metro and monorail operations must be integrated within the broader disaster response framework of the city. They noted that Mumbai’s fast-growing rail-based mobility infrastructure requires a parallel expansion of safety, rescue, and coordination mechanisms.
Civic authorities have also instructed that mock drills be held regularly at all metro and monorail stations to evaluate on-ground preparedness. According to senior BMC officials, these exercises will help assess response times, evacuation efficiency, and inter-agency coordination, ensuring that operators can act quickly in the event of breakdowns or natural calamities. Experts from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay who participated in the meeting commended the coordinated handling of the Chembur monorail incident, which involved the disaster management department, Mumbai Fire Brigade, and other civic agencies. They emphasised that while the incident was contained effectively, the city must institutionalise learnings from such events to prevent recurrence.
Officials from the BMC’s disaster management department added that clear communication channels, real-time monitoring, and joint control rooms would play a key role in improving coordination between agencies such as the metro, monorail, fire brigade, and police. The focus, they said, should be on reducing response lag and improving passenger safety outcomes. As Mumbai continues to expand its transport infrastructure through new metro corridors and the revival of the monorail system, experts argue that disaster management must evolve in tandem. Strengthening urban resilience is not only about infrastructure upgrades but also about operational preparedness and civic accountability.
With climate events, infrastructure stress, and dense ridership posing persistent risks, ensuring the safety of the city’s mobility networks remains integral to building a sustainable and disaster-resilient Mumbai.
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