Mega block on Harbour line after part of 46-year-old wall collapses

MUMBAI: At 7.15 am on Thursday, Central Railway (CR) motorman Shashikant Kamble brought a train to a sudden halt averting potential injury to passengers in a local heading from the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) to Panvel, ferrying close to 2000 commuters.

Kamble applied the emergency brakes in the nick of time after he saw a portion of a dilapidated wall belonging to a BrihanMumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) sub-station built atop the railways boundary wall, collapsing on to the track between Masjid Bunder and Sandhurst Road stations.

Following this incident, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) demolished the entire wall abutting the tracks and the periphery wall of a residential tower, in a two-hour mega block between 2 and 4 pm, suspending all train services between CSMT and Wadala stations. At least 100 local train services were delayed and 50 train services were partially cancelled (terminated before they reached their destination) on the Harbour line. Train services resumed at 4.30 after the BMC checked the overhead wire equipment and gave the safety clearance.

“The minute I started the train at Masjid Bunder station, I saw part of a structure near the track coming down. The speed of the local train was 15 kmph and I immediately applied emergency brakes and halted the local train,” said Kamble who operates local trains between CSMT- Kalyan/Karjat/Kasara and CSMT and Panvel railway stations, since he joined the CR in 2018.

“This was the first time and I applied emergency brakes to halt the train,” he added.

Kamble alerted the guard in the train and informed the Railways control room. The train was able to resume its journey after a 25-minute wait, after a team of railway staff cleared the debris.

A sub-station comprises equipment to reduce high voltage electrical power transmission to ensure suitable supply to consumers in the area. Civic officials said that it was likely built in 1976, civic officials said.

“Consumers construct such substations. It [the wall which fell] is part of the building [sub-station]. Necessary precautions are taken and there was no impact on electric supply,” Manoj Varade, BEST spokesperson said.

BMC gets into action

The wall collapse has spurred the civic body into action. Officials said that the local B-ward office — where the collapse happened — sent notices to office bearers of residential and commercial buildings adjoining the collapse site seeking a structural audit report to ascertain the condition of the buildings. An audit report, sought under article 353 (B) of Mumbai Municipal Corporation (MMC) Act, aims to ascertain whether an old building is either dangerous — and requires demolishing — or is repairable.

There are more than 2,000 properties to which the BMC has sent notices as pre-monsoon procedure seeking reports of an audit, civic data revealed.

“All the buildings situated here are more than 50 years old and every year we issue them a notice seeking an audit report. This year we have also done the same and after this incident we will expedite the process to ensure they submit the report at the earliest,” said Dhanaji Herlekar, assistant municipal commissioner and incharge of B-ward.

“The portion that has collapsed belongs to the BEST and has been constructed between the railway tracks and the periphery of a residential tower. We have pulled down the remaining portion of the wall and all the dangerous portions like the adjoining concrete slabs and pillars will be pulled down too,” Herlekar said.