Kolkata witnesses heaviest rainfall in four decades, 10 deaths, chaos ahead of Durga Puja; administration scrambles to restore normalcy
Efforts were underway on Wednesday to restore normalcy after heavy rains in Kolkata. Salt Lake and parts of the northern and central parts of the city remain waterlogged. A day earlier, torrential rains in Kolkata killed 10 people and disrupted normal life.
Between September 1 and September 22, Kolkata received 178.6 mm of rain, 16 percent less than the normal 213.7 mm of rain for this period. And between 8:30 a.m. yesterday and 8:30 a.m. today, the City of Joy received 247.4 mm of rain, most of which occurred during the overnight hours.
These figures, released by the India Meteorological Department, reveal the magnitude of the devastation caused by heavy rains in Kolkata, the City of Joy, just days before the annual Durga Puja. Kolkata received more rainfall in just a few hours than it has received in 22 days of this month. The torrential rains have flooded many areas, disrupting traffic, train, and metro services.
Efforts were underway to restore normalcy in Kolkata on Wednesday after heavy rains. Salt Lake and parts of the northern and central parts of the city remain waterlogged. A day earlier, torrential rains in Kolkata killed 10 people and disrupted normal life. The Meteorological Department has ruled out heavy rainfall in the city over the next 24 hours. However, it has predicted mostly cloudy skies and light to moderate rain with thunderstorms and strong winds at some places.
Water was drained from low-lying areas in and around Kolkata overnight, but residents of Bidhannagar are still grappling with flooding, with vehicles moving at slow speeds and pedestrians forced to navigate flooded streets. To avoid accidents, the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation kept streetlights off on Tuesday evening.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee postponed her scheduled Durga Puja pandal inauguration on Tuesday due to bad weather. She is expected to visit the pandals on Wednesday and also inaugurate the newly constructed fire station in Kalighat. Officials said that although floodwaters have gradually receded, restoring normal life before the festive season remains the immediate challenge for the administration.
They said that the situation in Kolkata and surrounding districts will be closely monitored on Wednesday, with more rain expected. At least 10 people died, nine of them due to electrocution, in Kolkata and surrounding districts overnight on Monday. This was the heaviest rainfall in nearly four decades.
This disrupted air, rail, and road transport, closed educational institutions, and forced the state government to declare early Durga Puja holidays. The 251.4 mm of rain in less than 24 hours was the highest since 1986 and the sixth highest rainfall in a single day in the last 137 years.
