Heavy rain cripples Kolkata; Metro, train services hit, roads waterlogged

Kolkata reeled under very heavy overnight rain on Tuesday, with over 300 mm recorded in some areas. Widespread flooding disrupted Metro and train services, paralysed traffic, and forced school closures. IMD warned of more rain due to a Bay of Bengal low-pressure system.

Kolkata: Life in Kolkata and its surrounding areas came to a near standstill on Tuesday as very heavy overnight rainfall triggered widespread flooding, bringing traffic, public transport, and daily activity to a grinding halt.

Train and Metro Railway services were disrupted in the city and suburbs owing to waterlogging of tracks, officials said.

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Water entered many houses and residential complexes in the city as roads went underwater following the rain that started past midnight.

Significant waterlogging was reported in the mid-section of the Blue Line (Dakshineswar–Shahid Khudiram), particularly between Mahanayak Uttam Kumar and Rabindra Sarobar stations, prompting the immediate suspension of services on this stretch.

A Metro Railway Kolkata spokesperson said in order to ensure passengers’ safety, services have been suspended between Shahid Khudiram and Maidan stations since morning hours.

“Truncated services are being run between Dakshineswar and Maidan stations,” he said, adding that normal services are expected to be resumed soon.

Owing to waterlogging of tracks, train movement in the Sealdah south section has been suspended, while skeleton services are being run in the Sealdah north and main sections, an Eastern Railway official said.

Train services have been partially affected to and from Howrah and Kolkata terminal stations of Eastern Railway as tracks got waterlogged owing to heavy downpour, he said. Train movement in the Circular Railway line has also been suspended due to waterlogging at Chitpur yard, he added. Many schools have declared a holiday in the wake of very heavy downpour and waterlogged streets.

Office-goers were having a tough time reaching their destinations because of lack of public transport and traffic snarls.

The city is bracing for more downpour as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said that a low-pressure area over the northeast Bay of Bengal is likely to bring heavy rain in several south Bengal districts.

The intensity of rain was higher in the southern and eastern parts of the city, with Garia Kamdahari recording 332 mm of rain in just a few hours, followed by Jodhpur Park at 285 mm, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) said.

Kalighat recorded 280 mm of rain, Topsia 275 mm, Ballygunge 264 mm, while Thantania in north Kolkata received 195 mm of rain, they added.

The weather office said heavy rainfall is likely to occur in Purba and Paschim Medinipur, South 24 Parganas, Jhargram and Bankura districts in South Bengal till Wednesday.

It said another fresh low-pressure area is likely to form over the east-central and adjoining north Bay of Bengal around September 25.