Hyderabad
It was yet another day of heavy rains, flooding and massive traffic jams in Hyderabad as the city and its surroundings recorded three centimetres of rain in just two hours on Thursday afternoon.
A day after the city was pounded by a record breaking 16cm of rains in few hours brought many areas of Hyderabad under water and forced the authorities to shift more than 500 families to safer places, normalcy was yet to return. The electricity could not be restored so far in Nizampet colony. Heavy pumps were deployed to remove flood waters from Bandaru Layout colony in Nizampet.
Rain related mishaps have claimed three lives in the city and scores of others were injured. People living in ground floor of many colonies and multi-storied complexes were forced to flee in panic and take shelter in the upper floors.
The floods in the “Chemical Drain” which brings the industrial pollutants and effluents from industries in city suburbs to Hussain Sagar have added to the woes of the people. Froth caused by chemicals had accumulated at many places and the people coming in touch with the froth and polluted water have complained of rashes on skin and burning.
Hyderabad Meteorological Center said the low pressure area over West Central Bay of Bengal was causing the incessant rains. It warned of more rains over Andhra Pradesh and Telangana over the next two days.
Thursday’s rains covered almost the entire city from Jedimetnla Balanagar at one end to Santoshnagar and Nagole at the other. Many places in Ranga Reddy district surrounding Hyderabad were also pounded by heavy rain.
The traffic in Hyderabad was still out of gear in many areas as the very busy NTR Mark opposite the state Secretariat had to be closed after a portion of the road caved following incessant rains. Similarly a part of the Tank Bund Road was also damaged hitting the flow of the traffic badly.
Heavy rains were also lashing other parts of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. After Hyderabad, Guntur was the worst hit as rain water entered several colonies and residential areas. “There was up to three feet water on some of the roads and in residential areas”, an official in Guntur said.
Train service between Macharla and Guntur was also cancelled as a portion of the railway track was washed away.
The train service was also badly hit as floodwaters washed away tracks at many places between Pidgurala and Sattenapally in Guntur division.
The district collector Kantilal Dande told the media that Guntur has witnessed record-breaking rains since Wednesday. One middle aged woman was killed due to the wall collapse in the district.
Rains were also continuing in Prakasham, Krishna and East and West Godavari districts and rivulets were in spate at many places.
Nakrekal recorded 24cm of rains over the last 24 hours followed by 22.4cm in Narsaraopeta and 21cm in Medikondur.
A road transport corporation bus was stuck in flood water at Krosur in Guntur district but the police men with the help of the local people rescued the passengers.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu spoke to the top officials of Guntur and Prakasham district and directed the administration to be on high alert as more rains were possible.
In Hyderabad the flood water was yet to fully recede from Nizampet area of Kukatpally where water had entered the colonies and townships following the heavy rains in the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday. Some of the areas including Qutbullahpur recorded 10cm of rains in just two hours breaking the past record.
Hyderabad had the highest rainfall of 24cm in 24 hours in August 29. But during the current spell of rains which started in the second week of this month, the city has recorded very heavy rains of 9cm to 10cm in just a couple of hours twice.
Due to heavy inflows, the level of water in Hussain Sagar lake had crossed the danger mark forcing the authorities to discharge water from the lake through the drains.
Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation commissioner B Janardhan Reddy said that 500 families residing abutting the drains in Sabarmati Nagar and other areas were shifted to safer places. With the Met office warning of more rains over the next 48 hours the administration was put on high alert, he said. “The water was being discharged from the lake in a controlled manner to avoid any danger to the people in the low lying areas”, he said.
The water of Hussain Sagar has also entered to the adjacent Lumbini Park. Officials said it was after a long gap of 16 years that the water had entered the park.
The wet spell of more than ten days had such an impact on the city that all its roads were looking war-ravaged. While at many places the roads were washed away leaving gravel behind, the potholes and deep ditches filled with rain water had made it difficult for the commuters to travel on them.
The Minister for Urban Development and Municipal Affairs K Taraka Rama Rao visited some of the badly-affected areas including Kukatpally and Nizampet area and supervised the rescue and relief operations.
The road traffic between Hyderabad and Nagarjunasagar was cut off as an old water tank collapsed on the road due to the heavy rains.
