IMD has predicted light to moderate rainfall in Hyderabad for next two days while 10 Telangana districts are on red alert.
A flood-like situation prevailed in several parts of Hyderabad as torrential rains accompanied by gusty winds continued unabated through Thursday, 27 July. Weathermen are, however, forecasting moderate rains on Friday and Saturday.
The scene in the city was similar to the rainy seasons of past years. C Babu, a 54-year-old security guard at Malakpet Market said the city dons a new look as the skies open up during the monsoon.
“The market is spread over 60 acres. As you can see, all roads are inundated. The water often reaches the top of the pavement in front of my office,” he said, looking at the muddy water. The pavement is a foot or so above the road.
The pothole-riddled roads revealed the monsoon pounding they have been receiving and the poor construction quality.
“The local corporator and GHMC officials inspected the roads recently. No efforts have been made to construct proper roads,” Babu said..
Vehicular traffic was relatively thin and smooth in the city as educational institutions remained shut due to the incessant rains, and employees of IT firms working from home. The scene on the roads was in contrast to the bumper-to-bumper traffic the city had witnessed on 24 July evening.
The Old City reported waterlogging at several places, including Chaderghat, Yakutpura, Malakpet, Malkajgiri, Moosarambagh, Shaikhpet, Charminar, Maredpally, Bandlaguda, Shirdinagar, Kalyannagar and Patelnagar. Water remained stagnant at Kukatpally, Uppal, Nagole and other low-lying areas.
Gajularamaram in the Kukatpally area of the Quthbullapur constituency on the outskirts of Hyderabad remained partially submerged after receiving 14.8 mm of rainfall till 27 July night.
@balaji25_t
Gajularamaram, Kukatpally.
10:20am. pic.twitter.com/awUUiDa9rG— Bhargav Teja (@itsbhargavteja) July 27, 2023
“The roads turned rivers especially near Ushodaya Colony. It also entered several houses and other buildings here. People are buying essential items such as milk and grocery in advance,” Bhargava Teja, a resident of Gajularamaram, told South First.
Waterlogging near a house in Maredpally. (South First)
People and vehicles traversed the inundated lanes. Shopkeepers complained of passing vehicles splashing water into their establishments.
“It is the same story every year. The corporation (GHMC) wakes up once the rainwater starts entering shops and other buildings. Otherwise they just come and take photos. There is no proper drainage system here to ensure smooth draining of water,” Amarnath, a shopkeeper at Chaderghat, told South First.
Several other residents, too, drew attention to the “poor drainage and civic infrastructure” leading to waterlogging in their neighbourhood.
Meanwhile, officials of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), assisted by policemen, were seen unclogging sewers to ensure smooth drainage of rainwater.
Due to the heavy inflow, water levels at the causeway bridge on the Musi river at Moosarambagh swelled and threatened to overflow on Thursday.
Telangana MA&UD Minister KT Rama Rao took stock of the situation with GHMC and HMDA officials. The police were deployed to ensure the safety of the public and to ease traffic congestion.
Vendors selling groceries on their vehicles. (South First)
While the Musi river did not overflow at the bridge, shops nearby were forced to down their shutters a few times over the past week.
“This happens almost every year whenever it rains heavily. The water comes till the shops and I have no option but to close it, affecting my business and I have to incur losses of around ₹30,000 to 40,000 a day,” Asif Khan, who owns a chicken shop close to the bridge, told South First.
Similarly, the heavy rains have also hit street vendors who runs their shops from makeshift tarpaulin tents or on carts.
“As there is a possibility of rains anytime, I have to be alert and quickly find a shelter nearby. Even customers are few for a week or so due to the rains,” Mohammed Shafee, a fruit vendor near Uppal Junction, said.
While markets and shops were open with the usual crowds in several localities, parks in some localities were inundated and remained largely inaccessible to residents.
DRF personnel clearing water stagnation. (South First)
Following the precautionary requests of authorities, there was a decrease of visitors to Hussain Sagar, BR Ambedkar Statue and the Necklace Road-Tank Bund stretch, the city’s tourism hotspots.
By 27 July night, the GHMC’s Disaster Response Force (DRF), which have stationed 30 teams at various parts of Hyderabad along with the national force, NDRF, received a total of 25 complaints.
The complaints included water stagnation, wall collapse, property damage, uprooted trees, and animal rescue.
Multiple DRF teams were seen pumping out water late Thursday night at Charminar, Yakutpura, Lakdikapul, Arundanthi Nagar, and Old Alwal.
In Kompally and Uppal, efforts to rescue a cat and a buffalo were underway. The DRF also cleared 16 uprooted trees across Hyderabad and demolished an unstable wall at Jubilee Hills.
The water level of Hussainsagar continued to remain perilously close to its maximum capacity.
“The level has reached 513.65 m till 7 pm on Thursday. It exceeded the full tank level of 513.41 m,” a GHMC official told South First.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted light to moderate rainfall in Hyderabad on 28 and 29 July.
Residents carrying fishing as an entertainment activity as water entered the Quthbullapur constituency. (Screengrab)
The Shaikhpet area of Hyderabad received the highest rainfall, 31.3 mm till 11 pm on 27 July. It is followed by Golconda (24.3 mm) and Maredpally Cantonment area (23.5 mm).
The IMD has once again issued a red alert for 10 districts, warning of heavy to very heavy rainfall and exceptionally heavy rain (more than 24 cm) at isolated places in Nirmal, Nizamabad, Jagtial, Rajanna Sircilla, Karimnagar, Peddapalli, Vikarabad, Sangareddy, Medak, and Kamareddy districts.
An orange alert has been issued for several other districts, indicating the likelihood of heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places.
These districts include Adilabad, Komaram Bheem Asifabad, Mancherial, Jayashankar Bhupalapally, Mulugu, Bhadradri Kothagudem, Khammam, Nalgonda, Suryapet, Mahabubabad, Warangal, Hanumakonda, Jangaon, Siddipet, Yadadri Bhuvanagiri, Rangareddy, Hyderabad, and Medchal-Malkajgiri.
Moreover, a yellow alert has been issued for a few places in the Nagarkurnool, Wanaparthi, Narayanpet, and Jogulamba Gadwal districts, indicating the possibility of heavy rainfall.
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