Chief Minister Eknath Shinde conducted an inspection of the ongoing desilting work undertaken by the Mumbai Municipal Corporation.
During the inspection, CM Shinde visited several key locations, including JK Chemical Nullah in Wadala, ATI Nullah in Chunabhatti, the Mithi River (casting yard) in Bandra, Majas Nullah in Jogeshwari, and the Dahisar River.
However, netizens' attention was more captivated by the 'green carpet' laid out for the Chief Minister than the inspection itself.
A video shared by news agency ANI showed CM Shinde arriving at JK Chemical Nullah in the F-North division of the BMC for the inspection. Netizens quickly noticed and commented on the green carpet laid out for the occasion.
One user quipped, "Only in India... green carpet to see a sewage drain! 🤣"
Another user expressed similar amusement in Hindi, "Brother, they laid a green carpet for drainage inspection."
"He walks down a carpet to stare at a drain!!" remarked an X user.
Columnist Sayantan Ghosh asked, "Where is the clip in which workers were made to lay a green carpet for the sahibs to walk on before their photo-op?"
An X user named Joe Athialy wondered, "A carpet for the CM to inspect a drain? Seriously?!!"
Another user named Saurabh Singh wrote in Hindi, "Green carpet laga hai. Yahan India me kuch bhi ho sakta hai... neta ko thoda pair jameen par rakhna chahiye" (They have laid out a green carpet. Anything can happen here in India. Leaders should sometimes keep their feet on the ground).
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Ghadigaonkar criticized, "Green carpet under the feet of the Chief Minister during the inspection tour of drain cleaning..? Is this really the government of the common people? Stop gimmicks! Chief Minister Shinde, when will you break the silence regarding the burden of drain cleaning that comes to light every year despite the 22 years of power in Thane?"
CM takes stock of preparations
After his inspection, the Chief Minister addressed a press conference to provide detailed information regarding the preparations ahead of the monsoon.
"To ensure that desilting is properly done, I inspected five major nullahs today. All officials of the BMC, including Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani, were present," CM Shinde said.
"To remove the garbage from these nullahs, 54,225 vehicles are being used. In areas like Hindmata, Milan Subway, and others where flooding occurs during rains, 482 pumps have been deployed. These pumps are in working condition, and the preparations aim to prevent flooding in these areas, thus avoiding any problems for commuters," CM Shinde added.