New Delhi: “The Millennium City” Gurgaon was completely paralysed on Friday after rain deluged the city roads and highways causing giant traffic jams stretching up to 20 kms.
Television images showed thousands of partially submerged cars stranded in miles-long jams on a key highway and link roads connecting New Delhi with the satellite town of Gurgaon.
Office-goers and locals were pictured wading through knee-deep water after heavy monsoon rains deluged streets late Thursday.
A man pulls his cart through floodwaters in Hero Honda chowk during a downpour in Gurgaon yesterday. AFP
The utter chaos began late Thursday night when hundreds of commuters were left stranded on the main highway connecting Delhi and Jaipur as well the roads that link Delhi to Gurgaon.
Commuters spoke of abandoning their cars and wading through knee-deep water to get home. For hours on Friday, cars were stranded or crawling on miles of highway.
According to police, the abandoned cars on the roadside worsened the situation in some areas. The Gurgaon police has advised people in Delhi to stay away and schools have been asked to shut down for two days.
“People coming to Gurgaon from Delhi are advised to stay back today to avoid being stuck in traffic jams due to flooded roads. Traffic situation in Gurgaon especially on NH8 and Sohna Road is congested and very slow due to rains and flooding. Avoid if possible,” said Gurgaon Police on Twitter.
Gurgaon police chief Navdeep Wirk was seen riding a bicycle to the blocked areas.
Union Road Minister Nitin Gadkari asked the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to rush a team of officers to Gurgaon to clear the area.
“Gadkari has asked the NHAI Chairman Raghav Chandra to immediately rush a team of senior officers to Gurgaon and personally monitor the situation. Chandra has been asked to take all necessary steps in cooperation with the state authorities to ensure smooth flow of vehicles on NH (National Highway) eight,” an official of the Road Transport Ministry said in a statement.
As NH 8 remained cut off, traffic moving towards states of Rajasthan and Maharashtra was stuck on the city roads and the highway.
NHAI Chief General Manager BS Singla informed Gulf News that his team was using heavy-duty water pumps to end waterlogging in the city.
Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattar wanted to inspect the area but his helicopter could not take off from Chandigarh because of bad weather.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Haryana says that a large amount of water exits Gurgaon through the Najafgarh drain, which flows through Delhi but is blocked partly, flooding the city.
Congress leader Randeep Surjewala tweeted, “it is quicker to reach New York from Delhi then Delhi to Gurgaon. The BJP destroying Gurgaon as India’s global hub.”
Unable to get anywhere, the angry residents headed to social media with an outpouring of complaints.
“I left for my office in the morning at 8am. It is already 11am and I am stuck on the road. I have barely moved five kms. I cant even go back. I am just completely stuck here,” said software engineer Ramit Sharma.
