Before one could celebrate the strong and satisfactory monsoon until now, mishaps have started hitting the headlines, the gravest one being the collapse of a bridge on the Mumbai-Goa Highway. Of the 42 missing, 14 bodies have been recovered after the British era bridge on River Savitri collapsed. Built in 1928, it had been most recently certified "safe" last month by the highway authorities. The two buses and two private vehicles that were swept away in the strong river current are yet to be recovered. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered a judicial probe and the government has also declared a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each for the victim's kin. As politicians, media, bystanders, selfie-nuts and the relatives of the missing gathered at the accident site, Maharashtra housing minister Prakash Mehta and his workers attacked a journalist from a Marathi TV channel, who was reportedly asking questions about affixing responsibility for the mishap. As the statement issued by the Press Club Mumbai rightly says, "It is a case of shooting the messenger."
As different disaster management forces try to recover bodies, floods have disrupted normal life in other parts of Maharashtra. In Nashik, many have been evacuated. Compared to what is happening elsewhere in the state, the agonisingly annoying problem of potholes and vehicles jumping involuntarily every few seconds on Mumbai roads seems far less serious. And that trains are delayed every other day. But there is a silver lining, water levels have gone up considerably and four of the seven reservoirs that supply water to the city are now full.