Heavy rain lashed Hyderabad once again on Tuesday morning, August 2, inundating roads and disrupting normal life. Roads and streets were flooded due to a heavy downpour which began at 8 am. Several parts of the city and outskirts witnessed heavy rains. School-going children and people going to workplaces faced severe hardships in reaching their destinations due to traffic snarls.
Water stagnation on roads affected the movement of traffic in areas like Khairatabad, Punjagutta, Banjara Hills, Jubilee Hills, Secunderabad, Mehdipatnam, Ameerpet, LB Nagar, Narayanguda and Himayat Nagar. Vehicular traffic was also affected in Attapur, Upparpally, Rajendra Nagar and other areas.
As heavy rain during peak traffic time is likely to result in more traffic jams, Hyderabad traffic police appealed to the citizens not to immediately start their journey after the stoppage of rain. "Wait for 1-2 hours for the rain water to drain out and also for the traffic congestion resulting from heavy rains to ease out," traffic police said in an alert. It also urged citizens to avoid unnecessary travel.
The fresh spell lashed the city even as some low-lying areas hit by last week's downpour remained submerged. Hyderabad has been receiving heavy rain for the last few weeks. According to the Telangana State Development Planning Society, the district has been receiving 125% excess rainfall.
Meanwhile, heavy rain in Vikarabad, Chevella and other upstream areas again triggered floods in the Musi River. Gates of twin reservoirs Himayat Sagar and Osman Sagar on the outskirts of Hyderabad were opened to let out flood water into the river, which flows through the city.
Hyderabad Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) opened four gates of Osman Sagar to let out 1,552 cusecs of water. The level of the reservoir on Tuesday morning stood at 1,786 feet against the full tank level of 1,790 feet. Two gates of Himayat Sagar were also opened to release 660 cusecs of water. The water level in the reservoir was 1,761 feet against the full tank level of 1,763 feet.