Overview
- Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde and Additional Municipal Commissioner Abhijit Bangar inspected the prototype on Monday and asked for a collapsible frame plus visibility features such as reflective strips or flashing lights.
- The prototype is a square metal-and-net enclosure about 1 metre high and 1.5 metres wide, offered in roughly 80 kg and 225 kg variants and developed by a private organisation.
- The BMC approved a pilot deployment in L Ward to record how the rail guard performs in real work conditions and to collect technical observations from municipal staff and engineers.
- The trial follows the July 2 death of 55-year-old Aslam Isak Shaikh, who fell into an open manhole in Sakinaka during heavy rain and renewed urgency on manhole safety.
- The civic body manages over 100,000 manholes, says nearly 96,383 already have safety nets, and it has launched a WhatsApp chatbot for reporting open or damaged covers at 9324500600.