RAIN SINKS NATIONAL CAPITAL, AGAIN

NEW DELHI: Delhi woke up to a second day of flooded streets, homes, shops and even hospitals, after intense morning showers on Wednesday brought back the city’s chronic and seemingly irresolvable misery of waterlogging.

India Meteorological Department (IMD) data showed the city recorded 112mm of rain in the 24 hours till 8:30am, and another 75.6mm fell in the three hours after that, precipitating chaos for the morning rush hour. This is the most amount of rain recorded in a single day in September in 19 years. On average, the entire month typically records 125.1mm amount of rain.

Wednesday’s deluge however, was by no measure a record for 24-hour period, and 100mm-plus rain days have occurred this year on multiple occasions in May, July and August, making the day particularly emblematic of the Capital’s inability to deal with even moderate amounts of rainfall.

As rush hour began, arterial stretches were jammed as waist-deep waters disabled many vehicles.

Crucial spots at and around Minto Road, ITO, Dhaula Kuan, Moolchand were among those badly hit, as were high-profile Lutyens enclaves such as Chanakyapuri, Shanti Path and Connaught Place.

Delhi Traffic Police said in all, 90 locations had heavy waterlogging. In one instance, videos shot by commuters showed water coming down in cascades from a flyover, prompting ridicule from some who described it as the Capital’s own Niagara falls.