Central Railway completes monsoon safety works at six flood-prone Mumbai suburban rail locations

Work at Sion-Kurla, Chunabhatti-Kurla, Vikhroli-Kanjurmarg Road, and Kurla-Tilaknagar, have been completed. Representation Pic

Central Railway (CR) has fixed critical six waterlogging-prone locations on the suburban railway network, built a micro tunnel near Thane, and has set up boulder nets, sumps, and tunnel portals for the ghat and mountain sections.

"Central Railway has undertaken extensive preparations to ensure safe, reliable, and uninterrupted train operations during the monsoon season. A comprehensive action plan focusing on prevention of waterlogging, augmentation of drainage infrastructure, protection of vulnerable locations, and strengthening of ghat sections has been implemented to tackle the challenging task of operating trains during monsoon season," CR Chief Spokesperson Dr Swapnil Nila said.

"CR has identified 18 major flooding-prone sites for targeted intervention through engineering solutions. Of these, works at six critical locations, including Sion-Kurla, Chunabhatti-Kurla, Vikhroli-Kanjurmarg Road, and Kurla-Tilaknagar, have been completed. Additional long-term works involving bridge augmentation, track raising, micro-tunnelling and drainage improvements are progressing in phases up to 2028," Dr Nila added.

Thane water tunnel

One of the most significant achievements has been the successful completion of the Thane microtunnelling project, a pioneering drainage enhancement initiative costing around '5.50 crore. The project involved installation of two 110-metre-long RCC pipelines through microtunnelling technology beneath railway tracks. The work has resolved the long-standing flooding problem at Thane station, where water levels previously rose above rail level during heavy rainfall. Post completion, water levels during monsoon are expected to reduce substantially, eliminating major disruptions and improving operational reliability.

Ghats, mountains

Special attention is being given to the challenging ghat sections between Kalyan-Lonavala-Karjat and Kasara-Igatpuri, which are vulnerable to landslides, boulder falls, washouts, and slope failures during the monsoon. Modern protection systems, including rockfall barriers, boulder netting, boulder-fall fencing, tunnel portals, gabion structures, wall strengthening, and boulder-catching sumps, are being implemented.

What is being done?

To tackle water-logging prone locations, 210 heavy-duty dewatering pumps ranging from 12.5 HP to 100 HP are being deployed during the monsoon period. Simultaneously, extensive cleaning of drains, culverts, and bridge waterways has been carried out to ensure smooth discharge of stormwater.