- Traffic in Delhi was disrupted due to heavy rain and waterlogging near IGI Airport and Mahipalpur
- Chief Minister Rekha Gupta inspected flooded areas and ordered prompt deployment of pumps
- Multiple underpasses, including Dwarka and NH-48 near the airport, experienced severe inundation
Traffic movement in Delhi was affected after heavy rain inundated key corridors on Saturday, including areas around the Indira Gandhi International Airport and Mahipalpur, raising concerns over preparedness ahead of the BRICS Summit next week.
The airport corridor was among the stretches hit by the downpour. People were seen wading through knee-deep water while an auto-rickshaw was nearly submerged.
The BRICS Summit is scheduled at Bharat Mandapam on September 12 and 13.
Amid the waterlogging, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta made a surprise inspection of affected areas near Sadbhavana Park in East Delhi on Saturday, seeking updates on drainage arrangements and the difficulties arising from the continuing rain.
Taking stock of waterlogging-prone stretches, Gupta instructed officials to deploy pumps and other required resources to ensure that the accumulated water was cleared swiftly.
The capital has been receiving incessant rain since Friday.
The Dwarka underpass connecting Palam with the IGI domestic area, along with the parts near Terminal 3, was inundated after Friday's heavy rain.
A Public Works Department (PWD) official had earlier said temporary pumps were deployed to remove the accumulated water from the Dwarka underpass. The official had said that flooding in nearby Mehrampur added to the water accumulation in the tunnel, which was subsequently cleared.
The PWD's earlier instructions under the flood-control order require its ground teams to alert the control room immediately once water stagnation in an underpass reaches 6 to 8 inches and to deploy mobile pumps.
If pumping fails to prevent the water level from rising, the control room informs the Traffic Police to halt movement through the affected underpass, the official had said.
PWD officials had said other roads and underpasses around the airport were under the jurisdiction of Delhi International Airport Limited and the National Highways Authority of India.
Rainfall on Saturday inundated the National Highway-48 stretch between IGI Airport and Dhaula Kuan, and waterlogged the Palam airport tunnel and Neem Chowk Road in Sangam Vihar.
Shakarpur, Laxmi Nagar and Mehrauli-Badarpur Road were among the other affected areas.
Water also accumulated along the stretch between Rotary Chowk and DJB Chowk, the road towards Omaxe via Radha Swami Satsang Bhavan, DJB Red Light-Omaxe Road and Omaxe Road in Dwarka, covering several sectors. The NH-8 underpass was also affected.
Amid waterlogging and preparations for the upcoming BRICS Summit, the Delhi Traffic Police warned commuters of slow movement at multiple locations.
The city also reported trees falling at several locations, including Mathura Road and near Malviya Nagar Metro Station, amid heavy downpour, with the PWD and the MCD receiving around 10 and eight complaints of tree falling, respectively, an official said.
About 10 calls concerning waterlogging were also received, most of which were addressed within an hour, the PWD official said.
The MCD also received three complaints related to waterlogging and 20 complaints of no electricity supply during the day.
As the capital prepares for the International BRICS Summit on September 12 and 13, senior Delhi government officials inspected the route between Bharat Mandapam and IGI Airport to identify vulnerable spots.
The latest waterlogging also comes against the backdrop of a review meeting held by Delhi Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu on August 26 with agencies concerned.
He called for a "whole of government" approach to the city's waterlogging problem, asking departments and agencies to work in close coordination rather than operate in silos.
Sandhu had also directed the civic agencies, including the PWD, to submit a report on waterlogging-related issues by the end of August.
Delhi remained under orange and red alerts for much of the morning and early afternoon.
From 8.30 am to 5.30 pm on Saturday, Safdarjung recorded 35.6 mm of rain, Palam 35.6 mm, Lodhi Road 30.8 mm, Ridge 24 mm and Aya Nagar 18.4 mm.
By 8.30 am, Palam had already received 84 mm of rain. The IGI Airport recorded 72 mm.
Pusa recorded 13.5 mm of rain, Mayur Vihar 7 mm, Jafarpur 2.5 mm, Chhatarpur 22 mm, Janakpuri 8.5 mm, Naraina 20.5 mm, Jharoda Kalan 4.5 mm and Pritampura 2.2 mm between 8.30 am and 5.30 pm.
The India Meteorological Department issued an orange alert for the rest of the day, predicting thunderstorms and light to moderate rain, while moderate to heavy showers were expected at many places from afternoon into the evening.
Thunderstorms with lightning and light to moderate rain were also likely during the night, the IMD said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
