Civic officials suspended; inter-department blame game begins

The BMC suspended three officials on Wednesday suspected of negligence towards protecting the health of the trees in the area

MUMBAI: In the shadow of the death of 11-year-old Vihan Shrivastav – killed when a 70-year-old peepal tree crashed on his school bus in Chembur on Tuesday – the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) suspended three officials on Wednesday suspected of negligence towards protecting the health of the trees in the area and constituted a two-member inquiry committee to investigate the death.

Mumbai, India. June 30, 2026 - Vihan Srivastav, an 11-year-old student, died, and four other children were injured when a large tree collapsed onto their school bus on Road No 11 in Chembur, Mumbai, India. June 30, 2026. (Photo by Raju Shinde/HT Photo) (Raju Shinde)

The suspended officials are Yogesh Parte, assistant engineer (roads), M/East ward; Jagdish Bhoir, assistant garden superintendent; and Arun Mundhe, sub-engineer (roads), M/West ward.

While the suspensions follow a resolution passed by the Standing Committee on Wednesday, where corporators cutting across party lines demanded cases of culpable homicide not amounting to murder be registered against those found responsible for the tragedy, an inter-departmental conflict dominated the nearly two-hour session.

The gardens department revealed two internal communications it had sent to the roads department warning that excavations “had damaged the roots of a peepal tree in Chembur which could collapse during monsoon”. A copy of the communication was presented to the leader of the house Ganesh Khankar. HT has seen copies of the communication.

It noted that similar warnings issued earlier, described damage to trees as a punishable offence under the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975, and called for immediate corrective measures.

Meanwhile, municipal commissioner Ashwini Bhide directed the newly formed two-member inquiry committee – comprising deputy municipal commissioner (special engineering) Purushottam Malvade and deputy municipal commissioner (engineering) Shashank Bhore -- to submit its report within eight days. The inquiry committee will examine the circumstances that led to the tree’s collapse on Tuesday, seek expert opinion and recommend corrective measures to prevent similar incidents across Mumbai.

The civic administration added that strict action will also be initiated against the contractor associated with the roadworks in the area.

Following the Chembur tragedy, Bhide directed the gardens department to undertake fresh pruning and time-bound re-inspections of trees identified as potentially hazardous.