Delhi under rain's siege: A day of 'nightmares' for the National Capital
The heavy rain caused major flooding. Tilak Bridge and Vikas Marg, which leads to Laxmi Nagar, were both underwater. The police had to close Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg to keep vehicles away from the flooded Minto Bridge. Trying to drive along Ring Road from Delhi Gate past Raj Ghat resulted in huge traffic jams.
The situation was made worse by several vehicles breaking down. Two buses stalled after turning left from ITO onto Vikas Marg. Another bus was left abandoned near Delhi Gate, and two more buses broke down almost at the same time near Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium. One of these buses blocked the left lane, while the other stopped in the main lane, leaving just one lane open for other cars. Waterlogging on the right side of the road also slowed traffic. Rukmani Gupta, who works in ITO, said, «As if this wasn't enough, waterlogging on the right side forced traffic to move extra slowly.»
Things didn’t get better once people left the ITO area. A bus broke down at the Ring Road and Vikas Marg junction near Indira Gandhi Stadium, causing more delays. Travelers heading to South Delhi and New Delhi faced similar problems, with power cuts making the situation worse by darkening the streets.
Trying to find a different route didn’t help much. Taking a U-turn from the ITO traffic lights to go to Delhi Gate didn’t work because the Ring Road near Rajghat and Indira Gandhi Stadium was also flooded. The only option left was to turn back to Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg and wade through knee-deep water.
A trip that usually takes
