New Delhi: A heavy downpour caused flooding and brought parts of the Indian capital to a virtual standstill for hours yesterday as several roads got submerged under rainwater, stranding vehicles. Two Metro stations were shut due to flooding.
The capital received 123 mm of rain from 11.30 am to 5.30 pm, one of the heaviest spells in the last 10 years, according to the meteorological office. The rain exposed the poor drainage system of the city and the inadequate anti-flooding measures taken by civic agencies.
The rain brought down the maximum temperature to 31.1 degrees Celsius, three notches below average, while the minimum dropped to 23 degrees Celsius, four notches below average. More rain is forecast for today.
A combination of waterlogged roads, uprooted trees and broken down vehicles resulted in chaos on roads for hours.
Massive traffic jams were reported from across the city and the worst affected was central Delhi.
The Delhi Metro service remained largely unaffected but two stations were shut down for over an hour due to flooding caused by rainwater seeping through the roof.
Northern Railway services were hit as 13 trains which were to pass through Delhi got delayed due to flooding at some stations.
Parts of Delhi airport too were flooded but the air traffic remained largely unaffected.
IANS
