Heavy rain in the peak evening hours sent people scurrying for cover in Hyderabad. The afternoon muggy weather gave way to pelting rain around 5 p.m. in Punjagutta, Banjara Hills, Jubilee Hills, Khairatabad, Kukatpally, Sainikpuri, Himayatnagar, Kotla Ali Jah, Yousufguda and most other areas of the city. Such was the ferocity that within an hour more than 6 cm was recorded with Charminar experiencing 6.7 cm, as per the weather report furnished by the GHMC. A doppler radar map showed most of the city covered with rain at 5.40 p.m. There was a let-up in rain only at 6.20 p.m.
Traffic ground to a halt on arterial roads as waterlogging incidents were reported from multiple locations: Khairatabad, Begumpet, Ravindra Bharati, and a number of locations on the other side of Musi. Hyderabad Traffic Police issued alerts about roads to avoid, including the one near Chief Minister’s Camp Office and Chandrayangutta without giving alternative paths.
Southern parts of the city recorded heavier rainfall, with Malakpet recording 6.6 cm by 6.30 p.m. The other areas which recorded heavy rain are Mehdipatnam – 6.3 cm, Madhapur – 5.7 cm, Falaknuma – 5 cm, Khairatabad 3 cm. Online traffic maps were blinking red for hours showing blockages on most routes: ‘Congestion on Old Mumbai Highway – 18-min delay, congestion on NH65 – 31-min delay, congestion on NH44 – 18-min delay, congestion on Inner Ring Road – 18-min delay’.
GHMC & HMWSSB chief M. Dana Kishore instructed his teams to be vigilant and advised citizens to call 155313 for any manhole issues and 040-21111111 for any rain related complaints. Places which received heavy rain include Sardar Mahal 6.7 cm, Asifnagar 6.5 cm, Madhapur 5.8 cm, Zoo Park 5.5 cm, Ameerpet 4.8 cm, Bandlaguda 4.1 cm, Srinagar Colony 3.9 cm, Nampally and Musheerabad 3 cm, etc.
The localised rainfall activity is expected to weaken on Wednesday, said Naga Ratna, Head of Weather Forecasting at India Meteorological Department’s Hyderabad office.
“Thunderstorm activity witnessed on Tuesday will be weak on Wednesday. There are no weather systems in the Bay of Bengal and the likelihood of widespread sustained rainfall is low during next few days,” she said.
