Rain throws a dampener on festive rush

A combination of the Raksha Bandhan festive rush, an extended weekend and sudden heavy rain on Saturday night turned commuting into an ordeal for thousands of Hyderabad residents. Already congested junctions across the city became severely clogged as downpour battered multiple areas, bringing traffic to a near standstill in several stretches.

The showers left large stretches of the city waterlogged, including Ameerpet, Begumpet, Secunderabad, Jawahar Nagar, Vanasthalipuram, Uppal, Rajendranagar, Attapur, Manikonda, Charminar, Malakpet Akshaya Hospital, Panjagutta flyover, Mehdipatnam, Masab Tank, Uppal Ring Road, Bible House towards Patny, Moosarambagh, Janapriya Cross Road near Eshwar Theatre, various ramps of the PVNR Expressway, Mallepally, Vengal Rao Nagar, Safa Children Hospital in Malakpet and Osmania University.

Commuters caught in heavy rain in Hyderabad on Saturday.
| Photo Credit:
RAMAKRISHNA G

As of 10 p.m., two locations recorded more than 10 cm of rainfall, with Begum Bazar receiving the highest at 11.7 cm, followed by Malakpet at 10.6 cm, according to data from the Telangana Development Planning Society (TGDPS). Until 7 p.m., rainfall in most parts of the city had been minimal, but within the next three hours, the weather situation changed dramatically. Khairatabad logged 9.4 cm followed by 9.2 cm in Nampally, 9.1 cm in Goshamahal, 9 cm in Hayathnagar, 8.6 cm in Musheerabad, 8.5 cm in Secunderabad, 8.4 cm in Gunfoundry, 7.6 cm in Srinagar Colony, 7.4 cm in Yousufguda, 7.2 cm in Charminar, 6.8 cm in Mehdipatnam, 6.8 in Amberpet and 6 cm in Bansilalpet.

Many commuters took shelter under metro stations, inadvertently worsening traffic congestion in those areas. Traffic snarls were particularly severe on the Panjagutta to Khairatabad stretch, Tarnaka to Uppal via Habsiguda, Uppal to Medipally, Begumpet to Secunderabad, Mehdipatnam towards the PVNR Expressway, Tolichowki, Shaikpet and Lakdikapul. “It was pouring down so heavily that there was almost zero visibility in Banjara Hills,” said another commuter.

Commuters caught in heavy rain in Hyderabad on Saturday.
| Photo Credit:
RAMAKRISHNA G

Police personnel from Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Rachakonda were deployed at key junctions to manage the flow of vehicles, while Disaster Response Force teams from Hyderabad (HYDRAA) were on standby. Just like many commuters wading through knee-deep water in several parts of the city, officials too were seen navigating the flooded streets.

“It usually takes me 30 minutes to travel from my office in Parade Ground to my home in Mallapur. Today, 80% of the route was as usual busy, but covering the last 2.5 km took me about 30 minutes. The road near the Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC) in Mallapur was jammed very badly due to the rains,” said 22-year-old Ayush.

Karun, 42, who had gone to his sister’s home in Khairatabad for Raksha Bandhan, said, “Since it was raining, I checked Google Maps before starting. For a distance of 5.6 km to my home, the estimated travel time was around 35 minutes.”