New Delhi: Heavy rains hit Kolkata on Tuesday flooding roads and impacting normal life in the city. At least 10 people died in the city, 9 of whom were
electrocuted. The rail, air and road traffic remained severely impacted through the day. This was the heaviest overnight rains in 4 decades in the ‘City of Joy’.
Kolkata sees highest single-day rains since 1986
Kolkata witnessed 251.4 mm rains in less than 24 hours. This is the highest rainfall in the city since 1986. This is also the sixth-highest single day rainfall in the last 137 years. The deluge not only hit Kolkata but also some adjoining districts.
The state government announced advanced Durga Puja Holidays for educational institutions. On Tuesday, Kolkata also saw the maximum hourly rainfall of 98 mm between 3 am and 4 am, said the India Meteorological Department. This was however not a cloudburst, they added.
The rainfall however left several areas inundated. The Metro services in the city were also severely impacted and the city tried to gasp back to normality, ahead of the Durga Puja festivities, next week.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee described the rainfall as “unprecedented”. She blamed the poor dredging of the Farakka barrage and lapses by private power utility CESC for the deaths due to rains. She appealed to people to stay indoors.
Expressing sadness at the deaths in the state, the CM informed that while 8 people died in Kolkata, 2 deaths happened in the adjoining areas of Shashan in North 24 Parganas and Amtala in South 24 Parganas. She termed the deaths as “unfortunate”.
The deluge forced Durga Puja organisers to defer inaugurations of community pujas as the calamity wreaked serious damage to marquees that are complete or nearly so, and pushed back the intricate installation art in pandals by artisans, reported PTI.
At least 90 flights were cancelled due to rains in Kolkata. Another 90 were delayed. Between midnight and 7:30 pm on Tuesday 42 incoming and 49 outgoing flights were cancelled from the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport due to continuous rains. The airlines said that poor visibility and bad weather led them to cancel several flights. Apart from cancellation, the airport also saw several delays. 33 incoming flights were delayed, while 62 departures happened post schedule.
According to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, the southern and eastern parts of the city were the worst hit, with Garia recording 332 mm of rainfall within a few hours and Jodhpur Park 285 mm.
