Seven people died and two remain trapped after a landslide struck Mumbai’s Sakinaka area on August 12, 2026, highlighting a recurring failure to evacuate at-risk residents despite known dangers and jurisdictional disputes between city agencies.
The August 12 landslide in Mumbai’s Sakinaka area killed seven people and left two others missing, with rescue teams struggling to reach survivors amid narrow access and restricted machinery use. This incident underscores a persistent pattern in the city: authorities identify landslide-prone zones but fail to enforce evacuations, leaving residents vulnerable to repeated disasters.
Recurring Risks and Inaction
Mumbai has long known where its most dangerous landslide zones are. Despite this, the city continues to face catastrophic losses. Between 1992 and 2026, more than 340 people have died in landslide incidents across 287 identified risk zones, according to BMC data. The August 12 disaster mirrors past tragedies, such as the 2021 Vikhroli and Chembur landslides that killed 29 people.
Civic officials admit the city’s failure to act. A BMC official stated, The land on which these structures stand doesn’t fall under BMC’s jurisdiction; therefore, we cannot carry out an enforcement drive without the collector’s authorisation.
The collector’s office countered, For Mumbai, the BMC is the primary planning body, and the collector’s office doesn’t have any resources to carry out such a large-scale eviction drive.
This deadlock has left vulnerable settlements untouched, even as warnings are issued.
Jurisdictional Disputes and Systemic Gaps
The legal and administrative divide between the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Mumbai Collector’s office has created a vacuum in action. While the BMC designates landslide-prone areas, it lacks authority over government-owned land, which falls under the collector’s jurisdiction. This was evident after the August 12 disaster, when municipal commissioner Ashwini Bhide claimed the hills were non-development zones under the collector’s control, while the collector’s office argued the BMC is the District Disaster Management Authority.
This conflict is not new. In 2018, the GSI report warned of 45 high-risk zones, yet no systematic eviction or relocation plan has been implemented. A civic official noted, A warning is not an evacuation plan,
highlighting the gap between awareness and action. The result is a cycle of disaster, response, and inaction that has claimed hundreds of lives.
Historical Context of Encroachment
Mumbai’s landslide risks are rooted in decades of unchecked urbanization. Mumbai chronicler Bharat Gothoskar explained that over more than 60 per cent of South Mumbai’s landmass was reclaimed from the sea, with hills quarried for construction. Once a hill was quarried, the abandoned quarry was squatted upon by underprivileged migrants,
Gothoskar said. These shanties lacked basic facilities and were unsafe, as the half-quarried hills would collapse during heavy rain.
The city’s expansion has turned these once-isolated areas into densely populated zones. Residents, facing a lack of affordable housing, continue to live in high-risk areas despite warnings. For residents, the risk came with a trade-off, lower rents in a city where affordable housing is scarce,
one source noted. This economic reality perpetuates the cycle of danger.
Rescue Challenges and Immediate Aftermath
Rescue efforts after the August 12 landslide faced significant obstacles. Soil and boulders from a nearby hillock collapsed onto three shanties in Gaushiya Chawl, killing seven and injuring seven others. Teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), fire brigade, and BMC worked for two days to locate two people still trapped, but narrow access and restrictions on heavy machinery hampered progress.
Residents of adjoining areas were evacuated, and temporary accommodation arranged. The BMC claimed it had issued warnings and conducted awareness drives in landslide-prone zones, particularly during the monsoon. However, the repeated failure to act on these warnings raises questions about the effectiveness of such measures.
Call for Systemic Change
The August 12 disaster has reignited calls for systemic reforms. Experts and activists argue that the city’s approach to landslide risks is reactive rather than proactive. The question is not why people continue to live in dangerous locations. It is why a city that has mapped them has built no system to make them safer or move the people out,
one source said.
With monsoon seasons intensifying and climate risks growing, the need for coordinated action is urgent. Without resolving jurisdictional conflicts and implementing evacuation plans, Mumbai’s vulnerable populations will remain at risk.
