Commuters cling to railings of the unusual transportation, paying Rs 40 a ride as waist-deep water cuts off railway station access; with public transport paralysed, tractors have become the only means of travel between Khorodi and Virar railway station.
Men, women, and children cling to tractor railings in Virar West
Relentless rain over the past four days has battered Palghar district, flooding towns like Vasai, Virar, and Dahanu. From chawls in Vasai left waterlogged to villages in Wada cut off, life has been brought to a standstill by one of the harshest monsoons in recent years. In Virar West, men, women, and children clung to tractor railings while wading through waist-deep waters. With public transport paralysed, tractors have become the only means of travel between Khorodi and Virar railway station.
“I paid Rs 40 just to reach the station, standing on the joint of the tractor with 20 others. It’s risky, but what choice do we have?” said Sunil Pawar, a commuter. At Viva College, Nalasopara, students have missed three days of classes. “Our campus is like an island. Even the bus depot is flooded. Exams or no exams, we cannot move,” said one student.
Officials carry out rescue and relief efforts in Bhoipada
For 76-year-old Ajit Sood and his wife Jayshree, floods turned their ground-floor flat in Virar East into a trap. “The water is up to our knees. Our bathroom is clogged, sewage is flowing back, and the meter box is submerged. If electricity comes in contact, what will happen? We are terrified,” Jayshree said. In Unitech Society, Virar East, nearly 40 buildings are underwater. “The kitchen, bathroom, everything is flooded. We clean, but within minutes it returns,” said Mr Gupta. His wife added, “For two days we haven’t cooked or slept properly. Every year it’s the same struggle.”
Farmers hit hard
In Ambede, poultry farmer Nilesh Pawde lost 5000 chickens. “It took me years to build this. In a single night, everything is gone,” he said, estimating losses in lakhs. In eastern Palghar, rivers Surya, Vaitarna, Vandri, and Tansa overflowed, submerging homes in Dhekale, Haloli, and Sambrepada. In Wada taluka, 14 houses in Gorat Gawari Pada and 15 in Padgha’s Ganesh Nagar went underwater. “We only saved ourselves. Everything else is gone,” said a villager from Sambarepada.
Dead chickens at poultry farmer Nilesh Pawde’s farm in Ambede; (right) flooded home of 76-year-old Ajit Sood and his wife, Jayshree. PICS/BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
In Dahanu, a gulmohar tree collapsed near Congress Bhavan, halting traffic until municipal workers cleared it. Major routes like Dahanu–Charoti–Trimbak and Vikramgad–Manor remained blocked, stranding travellers and goods. Locals allege that blocking of natural drains during the Mumbai–Vadodara Expressway construction worsened flooding. “Natural drains were blocked, now the water has nowhere to go. Our roads are lakes,” said Ramesh Patil, a local.
In Dahanu’s Kasa region, water entered homes in several neighbourhoods, while the Kasa–Charoti road was cut off as water gushed over Gulzari Bridge. The Navali underpass, connecting villages such as Navali, Vevoor, Kamare, and Varkhunti, was completely submerged. Locals complain it floods even during moderate rain, leaving them to travel “with their lives in their hands.”
Heavy rain has crippled trains, buses, and major roads, with markets shut and thousands stranded. Yet, locals have stepped in, with shopkeepers offering food to commuters and volunteers helping out the elderly cross flooded stretches.
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