Mumbai rain updates: ‘It was a nightmare at every station’

Six railway commuters recount hellish experiences returning home while waterlogging brought city’s lifeline to near-standstill

Himanshu Mukerjee, 27

I am an environmental consultant. Due to heavy rain and waterlogging, it took me quite a while to reach my destination while travelling from Ghansoli to Dahisar, where I reside. On arriving at Ghansoli station, I heard about waterlogging on the mainline, hence I opted for the Harbour line. There were delays and crowding. The journey from Chembur to Chunabhatti took 35 minutes because of waterlogging around Tilak Nagar drain and Kurla station. Trains ran at a speed of 15 kmph because of the circumstances.

Abhishek Jhanwar, 30

I am a chartered accountant who resides in Thakurli and works at Nariman Point I boarded a 7.29 pm Kalyan-bound 15-car local train from CSMT, which departed by 7.36 pm. As it was raining heavily I was already half wet. At Kurla, the train got crowded. As soon as the train left Kurla station, it halted for about 20 minutes. According to WhatsApp messages, trains were not running between Vikhroli and Bhandup due to waterlogging. It took 1.5 hours for my train to reach Mulund from Kurla. It took almost two and a half hours to reach Dombivli station, where I de-boarded around 10 pm. Instead of providing updates to passengers, recordings of PM Narendra Modi speaking about Swachh Bharat Abhiyan were played throughout the journey. People were getting calls from worried relatives. Everyone was frustrated.

Tushar Dhake, 45

I am a Kalyan resident who has been working for a non-banking financial company in Kalina, Santacruz. The train I was returning home in halted for almost two hours between Ghatkopar and Vikhroli stations. Yet, no announcement was made by a motorman or guard. Passengers were in a fix, not knowing whether to wait for the train to start moving or jump onto the tracks. There was no cellular network available and the atmosphere was stifling.
Railways could have at least made announcements and attempted to improve ventilation. A 40-minute journey from Kurla to Kalyan took almost 2 hours and 30 minutes.

Ram Pravesh Yadav, 37

I’m a Nerul resident. Once the rains had subsided, colleagues and I left our offices at Ghatkopar around 9.10 pm.  As the LBS Marg was badly congested, we walked all the way to the Ghatkopar railway station. We had to wait for almost an hour to catch a train to Kurla. It was very crowded due to the delay and the journey took more than half an hour. Once we alighted at Kurla, we saw that the harbour line tracks were flooded. After some time, we learnt that all trains had been cancelled. We tried to book a cab but none was available. After a while, we decided to walk home. At Chembur, we were offered a lift by a trucker who dropped us off at the Vashi APMC. We were able to get rickshaws here. We reached home around 2.30 am. One colleague reached his Panvel residence around 4 am.

Pradyumna Alwani, 35

I’m a banker who resides in Dombivli and works at Bandra Kurla Complex. I was stranded at Kurla station on Wednesday. There were no proper announcements. We were informed that trains had been delayed, but services had stopped. Commuters on trains were left in the dark as no announcements had been made. People faced issues due to the paucity of washrooms and food stalls. Seating arrangements on platforms were completely soaked.

K N Chandramouli, 72

I am a Sion resident who owns a plastic moulding company outside Kanjurmarg railway station. As usual, after winding up for the day around 7.30 pm on Wednesday, I proceed to the station to catch a train home. A CSMT-bound train arrived around 7.40 pm and I boarded it, not knowing that I was in for a horrific ordeal. The train did not budge for over 45 minutes and when it did move, it took another 45 minutes to reach the next station, Vikhroli. It was a nightmare at every station. There was a stampede-like situation. The coach was overpacked and suffocating due to the windows and doors being closed preventing rainwater from entering the compartment. Many felt extreme nausea. And I was travelling first class! It was approximately 2.30 hours when Sion arrived. At Sion, I was forcefully ejected onto the platform. I thanked God for keeping me intact.

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