Heavy rain creates havoc in India’s tech hub Bengaluru again
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BENGALURU – Parts of India’s tech capital Bengaluru were flooded on Oct 22 after heavy overnight rain, and a number of people were feared trapped after a building under construction collapsed owing to the downpour.
Indian weather officials expect heavy rain over the next few days in the southern states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu as what they called an “upper air cyclonic circulation” lay off the coast.
Bengaluru, once known as India’s garden city, has been suffering various issues, from gridlocked traffic to poor civic facilities.
Rapid urbanisation and the encroachment on the city’s lakes have blocked connecting canals, limiting Bengaluru’s capacity to absorb and siphon off water.
On Oct 22, residents faced waterlogged roads, fallen trees and many cars floating in water after a downpour overnight that surpassed records for the highest rainfall in 24 hours in the past couple of decades.
The local authorities said 241mm of rainfall was recorded in the past week, more than double the normal level for the period.
Television visuals showed people being rescued using boats and tractors, carrying their belongings as they were taken to safe locations. At least 15 people were rescued from a building under construction that collapsed after the rain and rescuers are still looking for more people, a local police official told Reuters.
The city witnessed its heaviest rain in decades in 2022 when the information technology industry was disrupted by waist-deep water in many neighbourhoods.
The latest round of flooding is in contrast to an acute water shortage earlier in 2024. REUTERS
