By Jayatri Nag
Copyright indiatimes
At least seven to eight persons died due to electrocution as torrential rains hit Kolkata. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee visited various waterlogged areas on Tuesday. “I heard 7-8 people have died due to electrocution. It is so unfortunate that people have lost their lives. Their families must all be given jobs by the CESC. We will extend all possible help,” Banerjee said during her visit. Among those who lost their lives were Firoz Ali Khan (50) of Beniapukur, Pranatosh Kundu (62) of Netaji Nagar, and Mumtaz Bibi (70) of Ekbalpur, besides an unidentified person in Gariahat. “I am in constant touch with the Mayor, Chief Secretary, and the police. Farakka has not been dredged properly. Every time it rains in Bihar, UP, Uttarakhand, Mumbai, Delhi, everywhere there is waterlogging. This time the rain is slightly unusual,” Banerjee said. Torrential overnight rain left Kolkata in a precarious situation on Tuesday. The city was completely inundated, with transport services, including railway and bus operations, almost crippled. ET BureauLive Events “I have never seen rain like this. I am saddened for the people who have lost their lives in the cloudburst. I have told schools to declare a holiday today. Office-goers should not go out for work,” she said. Banerjee added that even her house was submerged. “We are all suffering. Electricity is supplied by CESC, not us. It is their duty to ensure people do not suffer because of them. They will do business here but not modernize here? They should send people to the field and fix this,” she said. The Chief Minister also expressed concern about more water entering the city. “There will be more waterlogging. There is high tide in the Ganga river from Mahalaya. Where will we pump out the water? There is no place to go, it will again have to go to the Ganga only. Where will we send this water?” Banerjee said. Large parts of Kolkata remained inundated, and vehicles were stranded on arterial roads. Metro services were suspended on a long stretch of the Blue Line as the city struggled to cope with one of its heaviest spells of rain in years. Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim said most parts of the city were waterlogged and teams of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) were working round the clock to drain out water. Traffic movement was severely affected across major roads, with vehicles stranded for hours in knee-to-waist-deep water at key intersections such as Park Circus, Gariahat, Behala, and College Street.ET Bureau Many schools declared a holiday as students and staff could not make their way through flooded streets. Office-goers also faced severe hardships due to the lack of public transport and traffic snarls. Train and Metro Railway services were badly hit. Significant waterlogging was reported in the mid-section of the Blue Line (Dakshineswar–Shahid Khudiram), particularly between Mahanayak Uttam Kumar and Rabindra Sarobar stations, prompting suspension of services on this stretch. A Metro Railway spokesperson said that in order to ensure passenger safety, services were suspended between Shahid Khudiram and Maidan stations since the morning hours. “Truncated services are being run between Dakshineswar and Maidan stations,” the official said, adding that normal services are expected to resume soon. Eastern Railway authorities said train services in the Sealdah South section were also affected and remained suspended due to waterlogged tracks. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said a low-pressure area had formed over the northeast Bay of Bengal and was likely to bring heavy rainfall to several south Bengal districts. The intensity of the downpour was higher in the southern and eastern parts of Kolkata, the KMC said. Garia Kamdahari recorded 332 mm of rainfall in just a few hours, followed by Jodhpur Park (285 mm), Kalighat (280 mm), Topsia (275 mm), and Ballygunge (264 mm). Thantania in north Kolkata received 195 mm. The weather office warned that heavy rainfall is likely to continue in Purba and Paschim Medinipur, South 24 Parganas, Jhargram, and Bankura districts till Wednesday. It added that another fresh low-pressure area is likely to form over the east-central and adjoining north Bay of Bengal around September 25.Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now!
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