Kolkata, July 25 -- Residents of Kolkata and adjoining townships woke up to heavy downpours on Friday, leaving several parts of the city-especially Salt Lake and New Town-waterlogged and congested.
Despite the administration's efforts to mitigate the monsoon woes, the overnight torrential rains that began on Thursday overwhelmed civic infrastructure. Knee-deep water was reported in several areas, including Lalbazar Street, parts of APC Road, Amherst Street, Central Avenue and Park Circus Seven-Point Crossing.
The heavy rainfall triggered widespread traffic snarls, with vehicle movement slowing or halting due to flooding.
At Ultadanga and the Kankurgachi underpass, traffic congestion worsened as buses were diverted to lanes meant for smaller vehicles.
In New Town, while main roads remained mostly clear, many by-lanes were waterlogged. Blocked sewer lines, caused by accumulated construction debris, led to flooding on the ground floors of several apartment buildings. However, the stagnant water receded a few hours after the rain stopped. Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim told the media that all Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) drainage pumping stations were operational, and waterlogging was cleared within four to five hours.
He added that in areas such as Amherst Street, water receded quickly and assured that from next year, the issue would be resolved permanently.
He noted that, except for a few wards in the added areas, the rest of the city saw rapid drainage of rainwater. Minimal waterlogging occurred in areas where gully pits were blocked by plastic waste, he claimed.
Hakim also said that member, mayor-in-council (drainage) Tarak Singh, visited several drainage pumping stations to monitor operations. The KMC control room remained active and responded promptly to complaints.
Due to the heavy rainfall, portions of two buildings collapsed-one on BB Ganguly Street and another on Sudhir Chatterjee Street in Girish Park. No injuries were reported. Locals said the Girish Park building had been marked with a KMC 'dangerous building' notice. The civic body and police quickly cleared debris at both sites.
In the Nabadiganta Industrial Township area, waterlogging worsened by afternoon, with most main roads submerged. Though the situation improved by evening, officials warned it may deteriorate with further rain.
In Metro construction zones, particularly in Salt Lake, localised water accumulation was reported due to obstructions from ongoing work. Roads in Salt Lake
were also flooded as the Kestopur and Bagjola canals reached full capacity.
On VIP Road, the Haldiram's area faced severe waterlogging. The situation was especially bad in front of residential complexes on the airport-bound flank, affected by construction work on the Airport-Garia Metro corridor.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.