Downpour brings Delhi to a crawl

As the nation gears up to celebrate Independence Day, a spell of heavy rain on Thursday morning drenched the Capital, triggering severe waterlogging in several areas and bringing traffic to a standstill on key arterial roads.

Commuters faced long delays as vehicles inched forward through flooded stretches, with congestion reported at Ring Road and major border points of the city.

Key waterlogged areas included Lajpat Nagar, Rohtak Road, Anand Parbat, GTK Depot in Jahangirpuri, Adarsh Nagar, Old GT Road near Ring Road, the carriageway from Ashram towards Moolchand on Mathura Road, and the Dhaula Kuan-Gurugram road.

A DTC bus and several cars were stuck on the waterlogged Dhaula Kuan-Gurugram road as motorists pushed their vehicles through the flooded section.

According to the PWD’s flood control room, over 50 complaints of waterlogging were received.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the city received a total of 78-mm rainfall at Safdarjung, Delhi’s base weather station.

Ayanagar recorded 105-mm rainfall (the highest), Palam 87-mm, and Lodi Road 74-mm.

The city recorded a maximum temperature of 27.7°C and a minimum temperature of 23.6°C.

Meanwhile, Delhi Traffic Police took to X (formerly Twitter) to inform commuters about waterlogging.

“Due to the recent rains causing waterlogging at GTK Depot, Jahangirpuri, and Adarsh Nagar, traffic on Old GT Road is likely to be severely affected. To avoid congestion, commuters are advised to avoid taking Old GT Road and are requested to plan accordingly or take alternate routes,” it said in a post.

Meanwhile, AAP leaders shared videos of inundated areas in the national capital and slammed the Delhi Government over the loss of lives due to the heavy downpour.

AAP Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj blamed the government for the waterlogging across the city, alleging that it did not undertake de-silting of drains despite a court order.

“Gai bhains paani mein, humari car bhi paani mein hai,” he said sarcastically, using a popular Hindi idiom to state that his car had been submerged.

Yamuna inches closer to warning level

• The water level of the Yamuna in Delhi reached 204.29 m at the Old Railway Bridge at 4 pm, nearing the warning level of 204.5 m, officials said on Thursday
• According to officials, the situation is being monitored and the agencies concerned have been asked to take precautionary measures to deal with a potential flood-like situation
• The warning mark for the city is 204.5 m, while the danger mark is 205.3 m and evacuation starts at the 206-m mark. The Old Railway Bridge serves as a key observation point for tracking the river’s flow and potential flood risks