Relentless monsoon downpours across several states have turned deadly this week, with waterlogged streets, uprooted trees, collapsed homes and lightning strikes claiming more than 10 lives in different incidents. The India Meteorological Department has forecast more heavy to very heavy rain in the coming days, keeping local administrations scrambling to restore normal life. Residents in many cities are wading through knee deep water in their neighbourhoods, while traffic has slowed to a crawl on major roads and highways. Fresh flooding and landslides have also been reported from Arunachal Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh, where rising river levels in Kinnaur submerged a 100 foot iron bridge entirely.
Delhi's Roads Flood, but the Air Gets Cleaner
Continuous monsoon rain in the national capital turned several roads into pools of water, uprooted dozens of trees and triggered hours long traffic jams across the city. In an unexpected silver lining, the same heavy rain gave Delhi its cleanest air since September 2023, with parts of the city recording more than 160 millimetres of rainfall. The sky remained overcast on Friday morning as well, prompting the IMD to issue a yellow alert for thunderstorms and rain. The city recorded moderate rainfall over the previous 24 hours, with the Safdarjung Observatory, Delhi's base weather station, logging 33.6 millimetres of rain until 8:30 am. During the same period, Lodhi Road recorded 33.7 millimetres, the Ridge 25.9 millimetres, Ayanagar 4.2 millimetres and Palam 1.8 millimetres. The downpour pushed the city's Air Quality Index down to just 54, a rare bit of relief for Delhi residents.
Uttar Pradesh: Seven Dead as IMD Issues Red Alert for Western Districts
Monsoon activity has intensified sharply in Uttar Pradesh, prompting the IMD to issue a red alert on Thursday for parts of western Uttar Pradesh, warning of extremely heavy rain over the next 24 hours. At least seven people have already died in rain related incidents across the state. Officials said the deaths were recorded in separate incidents in Sant Kabir Nagar, Kushinagar, Bulandshahr, Shamli and Ghaziabad.
In Sant Kabir Nagar, two women working in their fields were killed by lightning strikes in separate villages. Sub divisional magistrate Arun Kumar said Chandni, 17, of Katya village and Varshana, 60, of Pratappur village, both in Mehdawal tehsil, died while working in their fields. He said a report had been sought into the incidents and that government assistance would be provided to the bereaved families.
In Kushinagar, 14 year old Rahul Kumar was killed by lightning while standing on a field ridge in Tadibhar village under the Vishunpura police station area, just as his mother was handing him vegetables she had picked from the field. Police said the family refused to allow a post mortem examination of the boy's body.
The rain's toll was not limited to open fields. In Muzaffarnagar, a mud house simply could not withstand the downpour. A kutcha house collapsed in Khampur village under the Mansurpur police station area in the early hours of Friday, killing 60 year old Saroj and injuring her husband. Station house officer Vipin Tyagi said the couple, Saroj and Krishna Kumar, were asleep inside their home when it caved in. Saroj's body has been sent for a post mortem, while Krishna Kumar is undergoing treatment in hospital.
Gujarat: Surat Flood Review Ends With Rs 500 Crore Project Announcement
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel travelled to Surat on Thursday to review the flood situation, in a meeting attended by Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi, Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil, along with administrative officials and local MLAs. After the meeting, Sanghavi praised Surat's residents and relief agencies for working together as the city battled the crisis. Speaking to reporters, he said the extremely heavy rain on July 7 had flooded several parts of Surat, calling it the heaviest rainfall in the city's history. He said around seven to eight areas saw severe waterlogging, but that the people of Surat worked as a team and helped government agencies wherever they could. NDRF, SDRF and other relief agencies worked tirelessly to evacuate people and move them to safer locations, he added. During the review meeting, the Chief Minister also announced a Rs 500 crore project aimed at preventing seawater from entering the city in the future.
Himachal Pradesh: Schools and Anganwadis Shut in Sirmaur and Solan as Rivers Swell
In Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district, incessant rain over the past 36 hours has thrown normal life out of gear. Given the situation, the Paonta administration declared a holiday for all educational institutions in the district on Friday. Officials said landslides had been reported at several places in the district's rural areas. There is some relief in that no human casualties have been reported so far, though a bull died late on Thursday evening after falling into a deep gorge near Shillai. The district's major rivers, including the Tons, Yamuna, Bata, Giri and Markanda, are all in spate along with dozens of smaller streams, and the administration has urged residents to stay away from these water bodies. Following an IMD warning of heavy rain and thunderstorms, Paonta sub divisional magistrate Dwij Goyal ordered all government and private schools in the Paonta sub division to remain closed on Friday.
Neighbouring Solan district followed suit, with all government and private educational institutions and anganwadi centres also shut on Friday. In separate orders, Sirmaur Deputy Commissioner Priyanka Verma and Solan Deputy Commissioner Manmohan Sharma said continuous rain had disrupted movement on rural roads, raised the risk of landslides, and thrown normal life out of gear, particularly in rural and hilly areas. Both officials said such adverse weather posed a risk to the safety of students commuting to and from school, prompting the precautionary closures.
Arunachal Pradesh: Central Team Assesses Damage, Satellite Images to Aid Survey of Cut Off Areas
An Inter Ministerial Central Team led by Ministry of Home Affairs Joint Secretary Nishtha Tiwari visited flood affected areas of Arunachal Pradesh to assess the damage caused by recent flash floods and landslides. The team assured the state government of all possible assistance from the Centre, even as continuous rain has left several areas still cut off from the rest of the state. The eight member high level delegation inspected affected areas, including Lower Siang district, to gauge the extent of the damage. However, bad weather and blocked roads meant the team could not reach some of the worst hit locations. In such inaccessible areas where a ground survey was not possible, satellite imagery will be used to help assess the scale of the damage.
Uttarakhand: Khatima Sees Waterlogging as Two More Days of Heavy Rain Forecast
In Uttarakhand, continuous heavy rain has also disrupted normal life in Khatima, where dense clouds hung over the town on Friday morning and roads were left waterlogged, troubling commuters and pedestrians alike. According to the IMD, the region is likely to see generally cloudy skies along with rain or thundershowers in the coming days. The weather office has also warned of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, along with heavy to very heavy rain, over the next two days, keeping the local administration on alert and prompting advisories for residents to take precautions.
West Bengal: Cooch Behar Records Highest Rainfall, Kolkata Streets Flood
Large parts of West Bengal have received heavy monsoon rainfall. Cooch Behar, in the northern part of the state, recorded the highest rainfall of 143 millimetres in the 24 hours leading up to Friday morning. In the state capital, rain continued well past the morning, causing considerable trouble for schoolchildren and office goers. Several parts of the city, including the Salt Lake area's well known IT hub Sector V, were left waterlogged, slowing traffic to a crawl. According to weather office data, the highest rainfall in south Bengal was recorded in Dum Dum, home to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, at 96 millimetres.
Tripura: Three Districts Flooded, Nearly 11,000 People in Relief Camps
Days of relentless rain in Tripura have left three districts flooded, forcing close to 11,000 people to take shelter in relief camps. Congress leader Birajit Sinha accused the state's Water Resources Department of failing to repair sluice gates in time, which he said led to flash floods in the low lying areas of Unakoti, Dhalai and Khowai districts. There is some relief in that no casualties have been reported so far. An official with the State Disaster Management Authority said the water level of the swollen Manun river had begun receding gradually after the intensity of the rain eased.
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari Reaches Murshidabad by Road
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari made his first visit to Murshidabad district since taking office on Friday, but non stop monsoon rain forced the cancellation of his flight, and he ended up travelling to the district by road instead. A senior official said the Chief Minister's itinerary was revised in view of the adverse weather, and the road journey was permitted only after adequate arrangements had been put in place.
Maharashtra: Minister Blames Unplanned Urbanisation, Not Rainfall, for Vasai Virar Floods
Maharashtra's Forest and Guardian Minister Ganesh Naik said the recent flooding in the Vasai Virar area of Palghar district was not really caused by excessive rainfall, but by unchecked urban expansion and encroachment on natural drainage channels. He said a detailed action plan to tackle flooding would be prepared within the next 15 to 20 days, based on satellite and drone surveys of the area. Naik visited the worst affected areas on Thursday, including Nalasopara, Naigaon, Sasunavghar and Saphale, where he spoke directly with residents and assessed the extent of the damage.
