Torrential rain wreaked havoc in Kolkata, leaving roads, airport, hospitals, residential and commercial facilities inundated. The officials of the meteorological department said Kolkata received 132 mm of rain from 12 midnight on Sunday till 7 a.m. on Monday. To top it all, more rain is predicted in the city and adjoining areas. The southern parts of the city including Behala, Mominpur, Ekbalpur, Khidderpore, Kalighat received more rains than the northern part of the city. The heavy rainfall threw the city out of gear and many areas particularly in central and south Kolkata are under the water. “Yesterday the lock gates were closed from 11 p.m. to 3 p.m. and that has created all the waterlogging. Even today the lock gates will be closed from 10 p.m. to 3 p.m. because of high tide in Hooghly River. On Sunday the tide was as high as 17 feet and naturally we had to close the gates. The rain water could not be drained and this had led to waterlogging in several parts of the city. We have activated all the 384 pumps spread across 73 pumping stations in Kolkata to drain the water out of the city but it will take nearly six hours to clear the water,” a senior official of Kolkata Municipal Corporation said.

 (AFP)