India, Aug. 13 -- Congress leader in the BMC, Ashraf Azmi, has urged municipal commissioner Ashwini Bhide to order an immediate safety and technical audit of Mumbai's hilly, sloping and landslide-prone areas following the landslide at Gausia Chawl in Chirag Nagar, Ghatkopar, on Wednesday.

In a letter to Bhide, Azmi underlined that Mumbai has several settlements on hill slopes. He demanded an independent assessment of these settlements by a committee comprising experts including engineers and geologists to determine whether construction and other development activities are compromising terrain stability and public safety. Landslides should not be treated merely as a consequence of heavy rainfall; potential risks need to be identified and ...