Another spell of intense rain brings traffic in Delhi to halt

Intermittent spells of light to moderate rain continued to sweep the Capital on Wednesday, which the Met department attributed to a high relative humidity prevailing in the northwest region — leading to localised episodes of waterlogging in some areas in west, south and central Delhi.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast “very light” to “light” rain in the city on Thursday and issued a “yellow alert” in this regard, saying that the streak of high humidity days will continue for the rest of the week.

At the Safdarjung observatory, which is representative of Delhi’s weather, 10.1mm of rainfall was recorded between 8.30 am and 5.30 pm on Wednesday. Palam recorded 25.4mm, Lodhi Road 5mm and Ayanagar 3.9mm during this period. In the 24 hours till 8.30 am, Safdarjung received 30.8mm, Palam 8.5mm, Lodhi Road 35mm and Ridge 11.3mm, IMD data showed.

“Most areas in the city received light rain while isolated areas recorded moderate rain. Humidity remained high and will remain fairly high for the remainder of the week,” said an IMD official.

Waterlogging in some areas

According to the monsoon report of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), the agency received six waterlogging complaints from areas like Keshavpuram, Siddhartha Extension, DMS colony in Hari Nagar, parts of Uttam Nagar, and Saraswati Marg in Karol Bagh. An MCD part of CR Park also reported waterlogging, adding that MCD also received a complaint regarding an uprooted tree from RK Puram.

The Delhi Traffic Police said police closed the Azad Market underpass in north Delhi due to waterlogging. “Traffic movement was restricted at the underpass in the carriageway from Azad Market towards Shastri Nagar,” the advisory said.

The relative humidity oscillated between 61% and 98% throughout the day. Delhi recorded a maximum temperature of 36.4 degrees Celsius (°C), which was a degree above normal. It was 33.2°C a day earlier. The minimum was 27.5°C, which is normal for this time of the year. It was 27.2°C on Tuesday.

The weather agency has predicted the maximum to hover around the same mark on Thursday but drop to 33°C on Friday due to more rain. The minimum will likely hover between 26°C-27°C over the next two days.

With Wednesday’s spell, the cumulative rainfall for the month now stands at 51.3mm. The normal rainfall mark for July is 209.7mm. Despite the rain, Delhi’s air quality was back in the “moderate” category after six consecutive days of “satisfactory” air. This was primarily down to a drop in wind speed. Delhi’s 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) recorded a reading of 138 (moderate) at 4pm on Wednesday. It was 84 (satisfactory) a day earlier at the same time.

Forecasts by the Early Warning System (EWS) for Delhi, developed by the Centre to forecast pollution in the Capital, said Delhi’s air will likely stay “moderate” on Thursday too, but could improve to “satisfactory” on Friday and Saturday.

Traffic police step up action

The Delhi Traffic Police on Wednesday said it has identified nearly 100 spots in the Capital where water gets logged during monsoon on the main roads impacting traffic, adding that a strategised action plan has been devised to manage vehicles, including road closure on affected routes.

Special commissioner of police K Jagadesan said that some of these steps include ones implemented earlier. “There was a list of 80 spots where water is logged during monsoon, but we have identified more than that. A list of actions was then prepared, which the traffic inspectors across Delhi started implementing on Tuesday,” said Jagadesan.

Police said that one of the most significant steps being undertaken is road closure as soon as the traffic starts to get affected due to waterlogging. “The road will be closed for traffic and vehicles will be diverted. There may be some congestion on the diverted routes, but the traffic will be moving,” he added.

The officer said that the traffic inspectors, who earlier took the formal route of contacting the civic agencies to facilitate the pumping of water, will now contact pump operators directly.

Another step taken by the traffic police is to rope in locals who have volunteered to help in case a vehicle breaks down. “Sometimes, a vehicle breaks down and there isn’t adequate staff to move. Traffic inspectors have drawn a list of local volunteers from whom help can be sought to push vehicles to the side if need be,” the officer added.

Police will also issue real-time advisories on social media. “These are shared on social media already. However, WhatsApp groups have been formed which have traffic inspectors and senior officers who can ensure the advisories are posted on social media,” he added.