Delhi Braces For More Rain After 11 Dead, Records Broken By Monsoon Entry

New Delhi:

Delhi residents, still recovering from the after-effects of the record-breaking downpour on Friday, must brace for more rain. The weather office has issued an orange alert for the national capital, predicting heavy rainfall today and tomorrow.

According to the India Meteorological Department’s colour-coded warning system, an orange alert asks people to be prepared for heavy rain.

The first two days of Monsoon in Delhi led to waterlogging in several low-lying areas and also claimed 11 lives. The city recorded 228.1 mm of rainfall when the Monsoon struck on Friday — the highest single-day June rainfall since 1936.

IMD scientist Soma Sen told NDTV that the Monsoon is advancing and several parts of north India are likely to receive heavy rain. “Eastern UP has been covered and in the next two-three days, western UP and Haryana will be covered,” she said.

Visuals of vehicles stuck in flooded underpasses and residents wading through water to get essential items flashed on TV screens since Friday morning. As the day progressed, news of deaths started coming in. The dead include several children, who drowned in ditches, and commuters stuck in flooded underpasses. A wall collapse incident at Vasant Vihar also claimed three lives. At Delhi airport’sTerminal -1, a portion of the canopy collapsed amid the heavy rain, crushing several cars. A cab driver, who was waiting for passengers, died in the incident.   

Waterlogging disrupted traffic movement in several areas, including the Pragati Maidan tunnel, which remained closed yesterday too.

Civic officials have said manpower has been ramped up to handle waterlogging complaints. New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) vice-chairman Satish Upadhyay told news agency PTI that four additional pumps are on standby basis at Golf Links and Bharti Nagar areas that reeled due to waterlogging on Friday.

“Three super suction machines mounted on vehicles will keep patrolling the vulnerable areas. We have also deployed additional staff and cancelled off-days of all staff,” he said. “CCTV cameras are being used to monitor vulnerable areas,” another official said.

Officials in Municipal Corporation of Delhi said their central control room is working round the clock. “In total, 72 permanent pumping stations were functional and working as per requirement, in addition 465 mobile/submersible pumps of different capacities were arranged to clear waterlogging. Manpower was adequately deployed in tandem with machines for quick release of water,” an official told PTI.

Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena has inspected the most-affected areas and drainage systems, a statement said. Mr Saxena found drains choked with garbage, debris and sludge, it added.

Weather experts have flagged extreme weather events in the national capital over the past few years. They have noted that Delhi receives around 650 mm of rainfall during Monsoon. And weather data shows the city received one-third of this on the first day alone.