Kolkata, September 23: Torrential overnight rain lashed Kolkata and its suburbs on Tuesday, leaving large parts of the city submerged and daily life in chaos. At least seven people lost their lives due to electrocution as floodwaters paralysed transport, power supply, and communication lines.
The city recorded more than 300 mm of rainfall between 1 a.m. and early morning, the heaviest in recent memory. Southern and eastern neighbourhoods were worst hit, with Garia Kamdahari recording 332 mm, followed by Jodhpur Park with 285 mm, Kalighat 280 mm and Topsia 275 mm.
Roads across Kolkata were under knee-deep water, crippling traffic movement and leaving vehicles stranded. Several areas that had never reported waterlogging before also went underwater. Floodwater entered hospitals including the stretch outside SSKM, though officials said medical services were not disrupted.
Train and metro services were severely affected as waterlogging hit Howrah, Sealdah and Chitpur yards. Many suburban trains were cancelled, short-terminated or delayed, while metro services faced disruptions through the day.
In several parts of the city, power and Internet services collapsed. Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation (CESC) cut electricity in multiple neighbourhoods to avoid further electrocution deaths, which were reported from Netaji Nagar, Kalikapur, Mominpur, Ballygunge Place and Beniapukur.
The heavy showers also damaged several Durga Puja pandals, causing setbacks for organisers just weeks before the festival. Water entered residential complexes and homes, forcing residents to wade through flooded lanes.
The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) said it had opened all lock gates since 4 a.m. to flush out rainwater into the Hooghly and teams were working round the clock to drain water. However, continued rain slowed the process.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), a low-pressure system over the northeast Bay of Bengal is likely to bring more heavy rainfall in the coming days across Kolkata and several South Bengal districts, including Purba and Paschim Medinipur, South 24 Parganas, Jhargram and Bankura.
