Delhi: One dead as heavy rain hits Capital; traffic jams, power outages in several parts

A man was found dead near the flooded Minto Bridge in Delhi after heavy rain on Sunday morning, ANI reported. The India Meteorological Department said the Safdarjung Observatory recorded 74.8 millimetres of rainfall till 8.30 am.

The police said that man was going towards Connaught Place and drowned while trying to make his way through the waterlogged bridge. The man’s body was spotted by a trackman working at the New Delhi yard. “I spotted the body while I was on duty at the tracks,” he told ANI. “I came down, swam and retrieved it. The body was floating in front of a bus.”

North Delhi Mayor Jai Prakash blamed the Aam Aadmi Party’s “irresponsible attitude” for the man’s death and demanded that it provide compensation to his family.

AAP leader Sanjay Singh, meanwhile, said that civic bodies and the Jal Board were also responsible for dealing with waterlogging and it was difficult to say which agency was responsible for the situation at a particular place.

However, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said this was not the time to play the blame game. He said that water had been drained out from Minto Bridge. “We are monitoring other waterlogged places and they will be drained out immediately,” he tweeted. “This is not the time to trade allegations.”

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Gautam Gambhir attacked Kejriwal after several areas in Delhi were flooded. “Got to hear that the Delhi government is running a ‘rain water harvesting’ scheme on the London-Paris like roads,” he tweeted. “When will we get to see its advertisements, chief minister ji?”

Meanwhile, a house in Anna Nagar area collapsed after the incessant rainfall. The house was situated at the edge of an overflowing drain.

“The Anna Nagar slums are behind the under-construction WHO headquarters, and next to a drain,” Delhi Fire Service chief Atul Garg told The Indian Express. “Due to heavy rainfall late last night, many residents evacuated homes at night only.”

Garg added that no casualties have been reported so far. “The flow of water in the nullah [drain] was intense, running water entered a pit which was dug to construct a parking facility, causing severe erosion which led to the collapse of nearby houses,” Pushpa, a resident, told ANI. “My house vanished as if it never existed.”

Waterlogging was seen in several parts of the Capital, hindering the movement of traffic. Heavy jams were reported at Azadpur, Mubarka Chowk, Ashoka Road, Ring Road, Bhairon Road and Mundka metro station.

Heavy rain also uprooted trees at several places, blocking the movement of vehicles. Power outages were also reported from several areas.

A Delhi Transport Corporation bus was stuck under the Minto Bridge. Only a small portion of the bus was visible above the water surface. The driver and the conductor of the bus were rescued by the fire department personnel.

Heavy waterlogging was also seen in Friends Colony and Milan Vihar Colony.