After the Tuesday morning showers in Bengaluru, many areas were marooned, leading to waterlogging and traffic snarls.
Normal life was disrupted once again following heavy pre-monsoon thundershowers that hit Bengaluru early Tuesday, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issuing an orange alert for the next two days for the city and a red alert for Karnataka, forecasting heavy rain and thunderstorms.
The Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre has also predicted extremely heavy rain, thunderstorms, and lightning on Wednesday, May 21, and heavy rain, thunderstorms, and lightning for May 22 and 23. Heavy rain is also predicted for the next three days on May 24, 25, and 26.
The spell of showers over the past week has resulted in 23 of the 31 districts of Karnataka recording a large excess in rainfall, as these have received 60 per cent or more rainfall than normal. For instance, Bengaluru Urban has received 278 mm of rainfall between May 1 to 20. This is 157 per cent more than normal, and almost a fifth of the annual normal for the district.
The IMD observatory in Bengaluru City recorded 37 mm of rainfall for the 24 hours ending at 8.30 am Tuesday. From 8.30 am Monday to 8.30 am Tuesday, the highest rainfall of 150 mm was recorded in Rajarajeshwari Nagar. R R Nagara recorded 159 mm, Kengeri recorded 144 mm, Vidyapeeta recorded 128 mm, Nayandahalli recorded 123 mm, and Doresanipalya recorded 99 mm of rainfall Tuesday ending at 8.30 am.
Tuesday morning showers left many areas marooned, leading to waterlogging and traffic snarls.
According to the Bengaluru traffic police department, slow-moving traffic was observed in several areas due to waterlogging, including Hosur Road, Iblur junction, Kasthuri Nagar, Hoodi, Gouraguntepalya, Bannerghatta Main Road, Balekundri junction, Queens Road, Silk Board Metro Station, Pothalappa Garden, and Madivala, among other areas.
Hosur Road, covering Electronic City, including the elevated expressway, was closed for traffic movement briefly at around 9.30 am before it was opened at 10.45 am. Electronic City houses major IT firms, including Infosys, TCS, Wipro, and others.
Many commuters expressed frustration over slow traffic movement, with some taking as long as two hours to cover just 7 km. “Left Electronic City at 8 AM as flyovers were blocked. Got stuck near Kudlu Gate—buses not moving. 7 km in 2+ hours. Elderly people, office-goers, all stranded. This isn’t the Bengaluru we knew,” Reshma Nair posted on X.
Most of the IT companies along Outer Ring Road between K R Puram and Silk Board have advised employees to work from home in light of heavy rain.
Bangalore Central MP PC Mohan said in an X post, “All companies in Bengaluru, including Infosys, must declare two days of work from home due to rains.”
Meanwhile, Bangalore South MP Tejasvi Surya slammed the Congress government on X ahead of the state government’s two-year celebration in Hospet. “Two years of @INCKarnataka’s #LootSarkara. Achievements? 1. Governance = Zero 2. Taxpayers = Freebie ATMs 3. Law & Order = Missing 4. Corruption = Maxed out Brand Bengaluru? Collapsing with every rain. Citizens want governance, not gimmicks. Karnataka deserves better,” he said in a post on X.
Bengaluru received a heavy spell of rain on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday, leaving residents of low-lying areas struggling with waterlogging. According to the weather department, several areas across Bengaluru received over 100 mm of rain overnight.
A 35-year-old woman was killed after a compound wall at an IT firm collapsed after heavy rain lashed Bengaluru for over six hours between Sunday and Monday. A resident of Madhuvana Apartment in BTM Second Stage, and the 12-year-old son of a helper, who worked in the apartment, were electrocuted while clearing the basement of floodwater
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