2 hours of showers drown Gurugram, traffic crawls

Major city junctions and underpasses were waterlogged on Sunday evening following two hours of rain, causing traffic jams in Gurugram

Major city junctions and underpasses were waterlogged on Sunday evening following two hours of rain, causing traffic jams in the city.

Vehicles wade through waterlogged street after heavy rain, at Hero Honda chowk, in Gurugram, India, on Sunday, September 23, 2018. (HT Photo)

Passengers exiting the Huda City Centre Metro station faced problems as the compound was inundated. Waterlogging was also reported from outside other metro stations in the city.

The Medanta underpass was shut due to heavy flooding and hydra cranes were parked at the entrance to block entry of vehicles. There was heavy waterlogging at the Hero Honda Chowk and Cyber City underpasses, though they remained open. Police were deployed at the Hero Honda Chowk underpass, which remained under water for two days last month following heavy rains, to monitor the situation.

Commuters outside Metro stations had a hard time accessing intermediate public transport due to waterlogging. Autos charged exorbitant amounts for travelling short distances, said residents. Jyoti Panjwani, who was travelling to Sector 31 from Huda City Center, said, “Autos are charging Rs120 for a trip that usually costs me Rs50.”

The rain started around 5.20pm and lasted till 7.30pm. Waterlogging and snarls were reported from Hero Honda Chowk, Huda City Centre, Subash Chowk, IFFCO Chowk, Sheetla Mata Road, Signature Towers, parts of Palam Vihar and Udyog Vihar, and Sectors 30, 31, 22, 23 and 14.

The sudden waterlogging raised concerns of Gurujam-like situation of 2016, when commuters had to leave vehicles on the road and walk to their homes due to a massive traffic jam. More recently, almost all major junctions and underpasses of the city went under water after record heavy rains on August 28.

Earlier on Sunday, the India Meteorological Department had predicted heavy to very heavy rain at isolated places over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh & Delhi. High wind speeds of 23kmph prevailed during the day.

Power supply was also affected, with areas like Rajendra Park and Ardee City suffering outages for more than four hours. Shortly after the rain began, the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam cut power to the city on a precautionary basis, according to a discom official. The power supply was restored after the rain stopped, the official said.