The financial capital and its neighbouring regions woke up to another bout of relentless monsoon fury on Monday, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) sounding a red alert for the city and an orange alert for Pune, Thane and Palghar. Torrential rain overnight has triggered landslides, waterlogging and large-scale disruption to road, rail and air travel between Mumbai and Pune, leaving thousands of commuters stranded and forcing authorities to shut schools and colleges across the region.
Here is a complete, updated breakdown of how the rains have hit different parts of daily life.
Mumbai Rains Quick Status Check:
- Mumbai-Pune Expressway: Shut in both directions; avoid travel
- Old Pune-Mumbai Highway: Also suspended amid flooding in Maval and Tamhini Ghat
- Long-distance trains (Mumbai-Pune): Cancelled, diverted or delayed
- Mumbai local trains: Running, with minor delays
- Flights: Delays and cancellations possible; check with your airline
- Schools/colleges (Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Palghar): Closed
- Offices: Open
Mumbai-Pune Expressway: Both Carriageways Hit
The Mumbai-Pune corridor has borne the brunt of the downpour. A landslide struck the Missing Link tunnel section of the expressway near the Khandala exit in the early hours of Monday, forcing officials to completely shut the Mumbai-bound carriageway. The debris came down close to the exit of Tunnel 2 on the Pune-to-Mumbai stretch after a section of the hillside gave way under continuous rain.
The Missing Link, a 13-km stretch that opened to traffic only around two months ago, had been built precisely to cut travel time between the two cities by bypassing the steep ghat section through tunnels and bridges. Ironically, it is this very corridor that has now ground to a halt.
With the expressway shut, traffic was diverted onto the older Lonavala-Khandala route, which promptly turned into a bumper-to-bumper nightmare. Several travellers reported being stuck for hours after the diversion kicked in around 4 am, and even this alternate stretch has since been hit by waterlogging and fresh landslide activity.
Separately, flood-like conditions were also reported in Maval and Tamhini Ghat, choking off other routes that connect Pune and Mumbai. The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) has appealed to commuters to stay off the road entirely for now.
What officials are saying: The MSRDC, in a post on X, said movement in both directions — Pune to Mumbai and Mumbai to Pune — has been halted until further notice. "Citizens are requested not to undertake any journey between Pune and Mumbai until further directions are issued. Those planning to travel are advised to postpone their journey and follow traffic advisories and updates issued by the Government agencies," the statement read.
Bottom line: Avoid the Pune-Mumbai route altogether today unless absolutely unavoidable, and keep checking MSRDC's official channels before stepping out.
Mumbai Train Services: Landslides Hit the Ghat Section
The Mumbai-Pune rail corridor has taken an equally hard hit. Services were suspended in the early hours of Monday after landslides struck the Karjat-Lonavala stretch in the Bhor Ghat section — one of the most challenging pieces of railway engineering on this route.
Central Railway officials confirmed that debris came down near Thakurwadi, and a second slide was reported on the middle line between Khandala and Monkey Hill around 3.05 am. Since the ghat section runs on three parallel tracks — the up line toward Mumbai, the down line toward Pune, and a middle line — all three ended up affected, forcing the railways to cancel, divert or delay a string of long-distance trains.
Among the services hit are several CSMT-Pune and Pune-CSMT trains, including intercity and express services connecting Solapur, along with the well-known Deccan Express and Deccan Queen.
The Railway Ministry has stepped in directly. Restoration crews have been mobilised, and officials from both Central and Western Railway zones have been asked to coordinate closely to clear the tracks and resume operations as quickly as possible, even as more heavy rain is forecast.
Good news for daily commuters: Mumbai's suburban local train network — the lifeline of the city — has largely held up. Services across all four Central Railway corridors were running, albeit with minor delays of a few minutes on the Main and Harbour lines, while the Trans-Harbour and Uran-Belapur corridors were on schedule.
Mumbai Rain Flights Disruption: Runway Shutdown, Cancellations and Diversions
Air travel hasn't been spared either. Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) had a rough Sunday, with strong gusty winds and poor visibility forcing a complete, hour-long suspension of runway operations. By the end of the day, the disruption had cascaded into over 330 delayed flights and 22 outright cancellations — roughly 3% of the day's total schedule.
Several flights, including services to and from Delhi and Indore, were called off, while over a dozen aircraft were diverted to nearby airports such as Surat and Ahmedabad before being cleared to return later.
IndiGO Mumbai Rain Advisory Today
Airlines have already flagged the disruption. IndiGo issued a travel advisory warning that bad weather over Mumbai could continue to impact flight schedules, urging passengers to track their flight status through the airline's app or website. Air India, too, issued an advisory yesterday, covering both its Delhi and Mumbai operations, citing heavy rain, low visibility and gusty winds.
