New Delhi: The capital Delhi, which is burning in the furnace of scorching heat, has now drowned in the rain on Friday. Nearly 9 inches of rain in three to four hours on Friday morning submerged the entire Delhi. One person died due to the collapse of the roof of Terminal-1 of Delhi Airport, while many flights had to be cancelled and many cars were ruined. The torrential rain on Friday morning has broken the record of 88 years.
Rain started in Delhi-NCR after midnight on Thursday, which continued till Friday morning. It rained so heavily in the capital in the morning that there was waterlogging everywhere. Water filled from roads to houses. Due to waterlogging, there was a problem of traffic jam on the roads during office hours. Due to 228 mm i.e. about 9 inches of rain in the capital, power went out at many places, while trees were uprooted at many places.
Due to torrential rains, the roof of Terminal-1 of Delhi Airport collapsed. One person died in this accident while 6 people were injured. Several cars were destroyed in this incident. More than 20 flights were disrupted due to the accident. As soon as the information about the incident was received, Delhi Fire Service started relief and rescue operations. On receiving information about the incident, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu also reached Terminal-1. He inspected the spot and gave a reward of Rs. 20 lakh and Rs. 3-3 lakh compensation to the injured was announced. Naidu said that normal service will start at Terminal-1 from Saturday.
Apart from this, a 39-year-old man died due to electric shock in Delhi's Rohini area, who fell on his knees. Apart from this, three workers were buried under the wall under construction in Vasant Vihar. Rescue operations continued till late evening. However, now there is little hope of their survival. Delhiites woke up in the morning and found that their houses were flooded while vehicles were submerged in water. Luxury areas like Lutyens Delhi, Hauz Khas, South Extension and Mayur Vihar were flooded, due to which important tunnels including Pragati Maidan had to be closed.
According to the weather department report, Delhi has received 228 mm of rain from 8.30 pm on Thursday to 8.30 am on Friday. This is the highest rainfall in 24 hours in June for the first time since 1936. On 28 June 1936, 235.5 mm of rain fell in 24 hours. Under normal circumstances, Delhi receives an average of 80.6 mm of rain in the entire month of June, while in the last 24 hours, three times more rain has fallen, due to which people are in a miserable condition.
Due to the rain, people were forced to go to office in knee-deep water in the morning. In such a situation, people had to face the problem of traffic jam everywhere. The first rain on Friday in Delhi, which has been scorching for two months, gave people much needed relief from the scorching heat. But those who escaped one disaster had to face another disaster. The national capital has never received more than 200 mm of rain in the entire month of June in the last 15 years.
However, the pre-monsoon rain has exposed the claims of Delhi Mayor Shaili Oberoi. She said that this time Delhiites will be able to enjoy the monsoon to the fullest. As the cleaning of drains has been completed, there will be no waterlogging in the capital. But before the monsoon rains, many places were flooded with two to three feet of water. Due to the floods, the government had to close many roads.
On the other hand, Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena called an emergency meeting to review the situation in Delhi which is facing the brunt of pre-monsoon rains. He ordered to set up an emergency control room in the capital and cancelled the leave of all officers for two months.