A 55-year-old man died after falling into an open manhole in Mumbai amid heavy rains on Thursday, prompting the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to suspend four civic officials and form a high-level probe committee, officials said.The incident, which drew sharp reactions from various leaders over Mumbai’s monsoon preparedness, occurred in the Chandivali area in the western suburbs, they said. It is the second rain-related death reported in the city this week.Mayor Ritu Tawde, who visited the spot, has announced an ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh for the family of the deceased, the BMC said in a release, adding that the contractor has been blacklisted.According to BMC officials, three contractual workers had removed the manhole cover to install a protective grill on a manhole on a sewer line along Khariani Road when the man, who was allegedly talking on his mobile phone, accidentally fell into the opening.Fire brigade and civic disaster management teams conducted a search and operation and the man’s body was recovered later, he said.Footage from a CCTV camera installed in the area showed the man, later identified as Aslam Ishaq Shaikh, walking past a tempo and suddenly disappearing. It also showed workers at the spot peering into the open manhole located in the Kurla-Sakinaka area.Officials said the workers lowered a ladder into the manhole to search for him, but found only his umbrella and slippers. Due to the strong flow of water, it was initially not possible to determine the direction in which he had been swept, officials said, citing preliminary information.The man was later located some distance from where he had fallen, they said. “A fireman equipped with breaching apparatus descended into the underground line and the man was pulled out,” an official said.He was rushed to the civic-run Rajavadi Hospital, where doctors declared him dead, the BMC official said.Four civic officials from the L-ward have been suspended. They have been identified as Assistant Commissioner Dhanaji Herlekar, Assistant/Sub-Engineer (Maintenance) Deepak Chougule, Junior Engineer (Maintenance) Abhijit Chougule and Assistant Engineer (Sewerage Operations) Uttam Patil, the release said.Prima facie, the contractor had failed to ensure adequate safety measures at the site, the release said. The contractor has been blacklisted, it added.Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide has constituted a high-level inquiry committee headed by the Additional Municipal Commissioner (Western Suburbs) to probe into the manhole death and recommend measures to prevent such accidents. The panel has been asked to submit its report within seven days, the release said.The civic body has directed all departments to ensure barricading around manhole work sites and ordered a 100 per cent inspection of all manholes across Mumbai within the next eight days.The BMC said Shaikh was talking on his mobile phone when he approached the work site. Workers reportedly tried to alert him, but he lost his balance and fell into the manhole, it said.Deputy Mayor Sanjay Ghadi said the civic body will file a case against the contractor, holding him responsible for “homicide”.Kishori Pednekar, Shiv Sena (UBT) member and opposition leader in the BMC, said it was shocking that such an incident could occur on a busy arterial road while civic work was in progress.She questioned the absence of adequate safety measures around the open manhole.Former MP and Shiv Sena leader Milind Deora described the manhole death as a preventable tragedy and demanded accountability.”How many more Mumbaikars must die before basic civic safety becomes a priority? Open manholes are not “accidents”, they are result of negligence, failed systems and lack of accountability,” he wrote on X.The matter was also raised in the Maharashtra assembly.