Mumbai: At least seven people were killed and six others injured after a portion of a hillock collapsed on some homes beneath at Gausiya Chawl off Chiragnagar in Ghatkopar where they were sleeping, early on Wednesday following torrential downpour, officials said. Among the victims are three minor children aged 2-14 and one victim has yet to be identified as rescue operations are on in full swing to save a few more persons still feared buried under the debris. Locals eyewitnesses and officials said that the tragedy occurred around 3 am, when huge quantities of soil, boulders and debris suddenly came crashing down from Hill No. 3 with deafening noise on three-four shanties, burying many of the occupants in deep sleep who could not even scream for help. Awakened by the crash sounds, many from the neighbourhood ran out in panic, some fearing it was an earthquake, as per an eyewitness, and others informed the Mumbai Fire Brigade and Mumbai Police. They rushed teams there and were soon joined by the NDRF and SDRF to launch rescue operations in the dark as intermittent rains continued. They face a major obstacle as the approach path to the disaster site was very narrow and hampered the movement of men and equipment. Deputy Commissioner of Police Ganesh Shinde said that soon after learning of the disaster, the search and rescue operations were launched. Nevertheless, local youths joined the efforts by forming relay queues to pick up and move the debris to save those trapped underneath. Grueling Efforts After several hours of grueling efforts, seven victims were dug out of the rubble and taken to the BMC's Rajawadi Hospital where they were pronounced dead on admission. Their identities are: Aban Arif Sheikh (02), Mannat Arif Shaikh (04), Marjina Arif Shaikh (27), all from a family; Mohammed Samir Ansari (14), Sahil Hussein A. Kazi (19) and Vivek Ramesh (27). The seventh victim’s identity is yet to be ascertained. Among the injured are Sohail Ansari, Mohammed Ansari, Sajid Ansari and Naimuddin Iqbal Khan, who are undergoing treatment at the hospital. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar mourned the loss of lives in the disaster, while Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde, along with Ward Committee Chairman Vijendra Shinde, Additional Municipal Commissioner (Eastern Suburbs) Dr. Avinash Dhakne and Assistant Municipal Commissioner (L-Ward) Anil Jadhav rushed to the crash site. Later, the Mayor announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs 4-Lakhs to the kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured, even as locals raised questions about their safety in such vulnerable settlements despite tall promises by the government. Mumbai Congress President and MP Varsha Gaikwad had first highlighted the risks in the unsafe hilly belts of Kurla-Ghatkopar in April and later in July, to the Collector, demanding a proper audit and constructing a retaining wall on the slopes. “Sadly, not much has been done and today we saw innocent lives being lost. Will the administration wake up now at least? This government likes to tom-tom about infrastructure but there is little work on what actually people need and will save their lives,” she said. Landslides-Mumbai’s biggest killers Land-slides and hill-slides have killed around 340 people in Mumbai in nearly 35 years, besides injuring 300-plus between 1992-2026, said RTI activist Anil Galgali. He said in 25 out of 36 Assembly constituencies in the city, 257 spots in the hilly areas are red-flagged as ‘dangerous’. Galgali said that the MHADA’s Mumbai Slum Improvement Board had recommended shifting 9,657 huts out of 22,483 huts in these areas on priority and protecting the remaining by building retaining walls. In Sep. 2011, then CM Prithviraj Chavan gave orders to prepare an action plan, but in 15 years nothing has moved.
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