Mumbai shuts schools as heavy rain lashes city under orange alert

Mumbai woke up to overcast skies and strong winds on Tuesday as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) kept the city under an orange alert for heavy rain and gusty conditions, prompting the closure of all schools and colleges as a precaution.

Government, private and civic-run educational institutions across the city were ordered shut for the day after relentless rain on Monday brought large parts of Mumbai and neighbouring districts to a halt. Several roads were waterlogged, trees were uprooted and multiple incidents of wall and billboard collapses were reported.

The IMD’s orange alert, the third stage in its four-tier warning system, signals the likelihood of severe weather capable of causing major disruption to transport and essential services, including power supply.

The impact of the monsoon was felt across the wider region as well. Traffic on the Mumbai-bound carriageway of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway’s Missing Link bypass resumed late on Monday night after remaining suspended for more than 18 hours following a landslide near Tunnel 2, the longest tunnel on the stretch. The route was reopened at 10.10 pm after safety checks at the site, according to the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation.

In Pune district, four people were killed in rain-related incidents on Monday. Three members of a family died in a landslide and wall collapse in Patan village in Maval tehsil, while two others were swept away in separate incidents linked to the heavy downpour, officials said.

Authorities said the intense rainfall had triggered multiple landslides in the district and forced the evacuation or relocation of more than 500 people to safer places.

With heavy rain continuing to batter parts of Maharashtra, officials remained on alert for further disruption in Mumbai and adjoining districts.

With PTI inputs