Heavy rainfall brought Delhi to a standstill yesterday, causing severe waterlogging in several parts of the national capital. A 22-year-old woman and her toddler drowned in Ghazipur, while key roads turned into rivers, trapping commuters in unending traffic jams and leaving many stranded.
The torrential downpour, which saw parts of the city receive record rainfall, prompted the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to issue a red alert for Delhi. The IMD advised residents to stay indoors, secure their homes, and avoid unnecessary travel. Delhi Education Minister Atishi announced late on Wednesday that all schools in the city would remain closed on August 1.
Commuters described massive traffic chaos not just in Delhi but also in the Delhi-Noida Expressway. In the national capital, commuters on the Mehrauli-Chhattarpur road claimed to be stuck on the road for over 1.5 hours because of heavy rain. Similarly, long queues of vehicles were spotted on the DND Flyway in Uttar Pradesh’s Noida to Delhi’s Moolchand.
Traffic was particularly chaotic on roads in Lutyens’ Delhi and those leading to Gurugram, Noida, Ghaziabad, and Faridabad. Old Rajinder Nagar, where students were protesting the death of three UPSC aspirants in a flooded coaching institute basement, was submerged in knee-deep water. In Connaught Place, several showrooms and restaurants experienced flooding.
In Ghazipur, Tanuja and her three-year-old son Priyansh drowned after slipping into a waterlogged drain near Khoda Colony. In north Delhi’s Sabji Mandi area, a house collapsed near Robin Cinema injuring one person, while in Vasant Kunj, a woman was hurt when a wall collapsed due to the heavy rains.
The weather also disrupted air traffic, with at least 10 flights to Delhi being diverted to Jaipur and Lucknow. Airlines warned of further potential disruptions due to the weather conditions. At Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, display board shows all flights are on time but passengers are verbally told abt delays once they enter through the gates.
