Mumbai, July 4 -- The legislative assembly witnessed repeated disruptions and adjournments on Friday over the absence of ministers and senior officials during a crucial discussion on civic administration in Mumbai, Thane and other cities in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), against the backdrop of recent deaths caused by open manholes and falling trees. Legislators from both the treasury and opposition benches criticised the government and the civic administration, alleging that they were not taking the matter seriously. The assembly has been debating civic administration in MMR over the past three days, after the onset of the monsoon led to multiple fatalities attributed to infrastructure failures and civic negligence. A special sitting on the debate was scheduled to begin at 9.30 am on Friday. However, the House had to be adjourned twice because Uday Samant, the minister handling the legislative business of the urban development department, was unable to reach the assembly in time. Opposition legislators strongly objected to the delay and accused the government of treating the debate lightly. "The transportation system is in such poor shape that even ministers staying close to Vidhan Bhavan are unable to reach the House on time," said Congress MLA Amin Patel. When the House resumed after the two adjournments, textiles minister Sanjay Savkare requested that the members begin the proceedings, saying the concerned minister would arrive shortly. The debate again witnessed disruptions during the afternoon session, with BJP MLAs Atul Bhatkhalkar and Ameet Satam, along with Congress MLA Aslam Shaikh, objecting to the absence of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials from the officers' gallery. The legislators alleged that the officials were disrespecting the House and its proceedings. The government subsequently summoned BMC officials to the assembly to ensure the smooth conduct of business. Bhatkhalkar said the repeated absence of civic officials was unacceptable. "This is not happening for the first time. The speaker had to intervene and issue a notice two days ago during the same debate concerning Mumbai. Officials from the BMC need to be present in the officers' gallery whenever civic and administrative issues relating to Mumbai are being discussed. Their repeated absence sends a message that they are not serious about the proceedings of the House," he said. Legislators from across party lines questioned how ministers would obtain factual inputs during the debate if the concerned officials were not present. Responding to the objections, tourism minister Shambhuraj Desai said BMC officials were attending proceedings in the legislative council and would be called to the assembly immediately. The debate resumed after the officials arrived....