Sirens ‘urgently procured’ in the aftermath of Op Sindoor yet to be installed in Mumbai for want of funds

According to a government official, “In the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, when we wanted to conduct mock drill exercises, we found that Civil Defence did not have the necessary sirens. Following this, 142 sirens were purchased at Rs 63.47 lakh.”

Delivered in May, the sirens were handed over to the BMC and district collectors who are disaster management authorities in their respective jurisdictions. “While the sirens were installed in most of the districts, 60 sirens provided for Mumbai are yet to be installed in chosen locations that include BMC fire stations and other government buildings,” the official added.

A senior BMC official told The Indian Express on condition of anonymity, “It would cost around Rs 70 – 80 lakh to instal 60 sirens and funds for the same have not been provided by the Relief and Rehabilitation Department.”

Dr Bhalchandra Chavan, director of Disaster Management Unit under the Relief & Rehabilitation department, said that Rs 63 lakh was given to the Home department for the purchase of sirens. “Had a demand for setting up of these sirens been made, the amount would have been approved,” Chavan told The Indian Express.

According to another official, the BMC will soon issue tenders to instal the sirens. “The installation of these sirens has to be carried out by a third party who can be awarded the contract only after a tendering process. For other districts, it is a smaller process but for a city like Mumbai where 60 sirens have to be installed, it is a huge cost.”

The government official said, “In the aftermath of Operation Sindoor, Rs 1 crore was allotted for disaster management to the BMC while Rs 50 lakh was allotted to the districts We hope that the BMC, which is Asia’s richest civic body, would get the sirens installed soon.” The official added that in Mumbai, there would be a control room as well.

Soon after the Pahalgam attack on April 22 in which 26 civilians were killed, the government directed northern and western states as well as Union Territories to test and strengthen civil defence mechanisms to enhance preparedness for potential wartime scenarios.

They were also asked to carry out a mock drill exercise on May 7 – the day Operation Sindoor was carried out in which terror sites in Pakistan were destroyed.

While preparing for the mock drill, it came to light in Mumbai that only 40 out of the 127 sirens were functional. Initially, 306 sirens were installed at government-run institutions over the years after the Indo-China war but many were later removed due to high electricity costs.

Across the state, a few sirens were in working condition and on May 8, the Civil Defence authorities sent a proposal for 150 sirens to be installed in eight districts. On May 9, the government authorised purchase of these sirens mentioning “action should be taken at your level in accordance with prevailing rules of the government for its urgent purchase”.

On May 10, a committee was formed and in the meeting it was decided to purchase 97 sirens from M/s Kheraj electrical Mumbai at Rs 42 lakh. On May 15, 45 more were purchased at Rs 21.19 lakh, bringing the total to 142 sirens purchased at Rs 63.47 lakh.

The official said that the sirens were delivered in the same month following which 60 spots in Mumbai were identified. However, the sirens have been lying unattended at various spots since then.

The sirens will be placed in such a manner the entire city and eventually the state can be alerted by pressing a single button.