Eknath Shinde directs 3 ministers on Maharashtra floods from hospital bed
Synopsis
Maharashtra's Deputy CM Eknath Shinde chaired flood-relief meetings from a hospital bed — saline lines and all — directing three ministers to personally visit disaster zones in Raigad and Ratnagiri as rivers in Konkan breach danger marks and Mumbai battles tree falls and open manholes. The image of an IV-connected minister running state operations has become the defining visual of the 2025 Maharashtra monsoon crisis.
Key Takeaways
Deputy CM Eknath Shinde conducted flood review meetings via video conference from hospital on Monday, 7 July 2025 , with IV saline lines attached.
He directed ministers Bharat Gogawale , Yogesh Kadam , and Uday Samant to personally visit disaster-hit zones in Raigad and Ratnagiri .
Gogawale has left for Raigad following reports of a landslide in Nagothane and is expected to submit a situational report.
Shinde, hospitalised for three days due to exhaustion and a throat infection, has been declared stable and improving.
Heavy rains over four days have devastated Mumbai , Thane , Pune , and the Konkan region, with rivers in Konkan breaching danger marks.
Mumbai's civic body was ordered to remove hazardous trees, secure open manholes, and audit landslide-prone zones.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday, 7 July 2025, chaired a high-level flood review meeting via video conference directly from his hospital room, with intravenous saline lines attached to both hands, as relentless monsoon rains continued to batter Mumbai, Konkan, and Raigad. Despite being hospitalised for the past three days due to exhaustion and a throat infection, Shinde has remained operationally active, issuing directives to ministers and district officials to accelerate rescue and relief efforts across the state.
Key Directives Issued
Shinde issued specific orders to three ministers with jurisdiction over the worst-affected districts: Bharat Gogawale, Yogesh Kadam, and Uday Samant — all holding portfolios linked to Raigad and Ratnagiri. They were directed to personally visit waterlogged and disaster-hit zones, particularly in Mahad and across Raigad district, and to ensure stranded residents are relocated to safe shelters without delay.
Following reports of a landslide in the Nagothane area, Minister Gogawale departed immediately for Raigad under Shinde's directive. He is expected to submit a comprehensive situational report after inspecting the affected sites.
Mumbai Monsoon Response Under Review
In his capacity as Guardian Minister of Mumbai, Shinde held a separate virtual meeting with Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide, reviewing the city's monsoon preparedness and response. He ordered all civic officials to deploy on the ground and address complaints raised by ward corporators with urgency.
Shinde also flagged a sharp rise in tree-falling incidents across Mumbai, directing the civic body to remove hazardous and precariously leaning trees immediately. He further ordered the securing of open manholes and a thorough audit of landslide-prone areas across the city.
Scale of Flood Damage Across Maharashtra
For the past four days, continuous heavy rainfall has caused widespread devastation across Mumbai, Thane, Pune, and the Konkan region, severely disrupting daily life. Rivers in Konkan have begun breaching their danger marks, and Raigad faces a similarly critical situation. Shinde has mobilised Shiv Sena party workers, ministers, MLAs, and MPs to assist citizens on the ground.
During his morning review, Shinde evaluated district-wise flood status, checked the availability of relief materials, and tracked which political leaders were actively present in affected areas — instructing those who were not to visit immediately and coordinate with local administrations.
Shinde's Condition and Hospital Visuals
Officials confirmed that Shinde's condition is now stable and improving. A photograph from one of his virtual meetings, showing him conducting state business with saline IV lines attached to both hands, circulated widely on television channels, underscoring the political optics of a minister visibly refusing to step back from crisis management while hospitalised.
This is not the first time a Maharashtra leader has managed a monsoon emergency from a distance — but the visual of an IV-connected deputy chief minister chairing ministerial reviews has drawn significant public attention to both the severity of the floods and the administration's response posture. With the monsoon season far from over, the coming days will test whether the ground-level mobilisation translates into measurable relief for affected communities.
Point of View
Rather than as a default response to a four-day flooding crisis? Maharashtra's monsoon emergency infrastructure has long been criticised for reactive rather than anticipatory deployment. The real test is not whether ministers visit Raigad after being told to, but whether the state's pre-positioned relief machinery — shelters, boats, rations — was adequate before the rivers breached. That question is unlikely to be answered by a situational report.
NationPress
6 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Eknath Shinde in hospital?
Shinde was hospitalised due to exhaustion and a throat infection. He has been in hospital for three days, but officials confirmed his condition is now stable and improving.
Which ministers did Eknath Shinde direct on flood relief?
Shinde issued specific directives to ministers Bharat Gogawale, Yogesh Kadam, and Uday Samant, who hold portfolios linked to Raigad and Ratnagiri. They were ordered to personally visit waterlogged and disaster-hit zones and relocate stranded citizens to safe shelters.
How severe are the Maharashtra floods in July 2025?
Four days of continuous heavy rainfall have caused widespread devastation across Mumbai, Thane, Pune, and the Konkan region. Rivers in Konkan have begun breaching their danger marks, and Raigad is facing a critical situation with a landslide reported in the Nagothane area.
What orders did Shinde give for Mumbai's monsoon response?
Shinde directed Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide to deploy all civic officials on the ground, address ward corporator complaints urgently, remove hazardous leaning trees, secure open manholes, and audit landslide-prone areas across the city.
What is the significance of Shinde conducting meetings from hospital?
A photograph showing Shinde chairing virtual ministerial meetings with IV saline lines attached to both hands circulated widely on television, highlighting both the severity of the flooding crisis and the administration's effort to demonstrate active crisis management despite the deputy chief minister's hospitalisation.
