Rain in parts of Delhi leads to traffic disruptions

Traffic jams were seen in various parts of the national capital, including areas in east and west Delhi, on Thursday due to waterlogging caused by rain.

Several locations in Delhi-NCR, such as India Gate, Janpath Road, R K Puram, Kalindikunj, Gazipur, Indirapuram, Laxmi Nagar, Dwarka, Connaught Place, Noida, Safdarjung, Uttam Nagar, East of Kailash, and Rohini, experienced light showers on Thursday morning.

The city recorded a minimum temperature of 23.1 degrees Celsius, 2.5 notches below normal, with the weather department issuing an ‘orange’ alert for heavy rainfall.

The Delhi Police informed via social media platform X that traffic was disrupted on Old Pankha Road in the carriageway from T point Uttam Nagar East Metro Station towards Pankha Road due to a large pothole.

“Traffic is affected on GTK Road in both directions between Mukarba Chowk and Azadpur Chowk because of waterlogging near GTK Depot,” reads a post by the Delhi Traffic Police on X.

In another post, they reported that traffic on MB Road, in both directions between Khanpur T Point and Mehrauli, was impacted by potholes and waterlogging.

Similar issues of potholes and waterlogging led to traffic jams on Rohtak Road.

On Najafgarh Road, the carriageway from Nawada to Uttam Nagar saw disruptions due to ongoing work by the Bombay Suburban Electric Supply (BSES), according to the police.

A commuter, advocate Rohit Tomar, mentioned, “There was a heavy jam near IHBAS hospital at Dilshad Garden. It took me an extra half hour to reach Karkardooma Court for an important case hearing.”

Traffic delays were also reported near Britannia flyover and Punjabi Bagh in west Delhi, as well as Mangolpuri flyover in northwest Delhi.

Another commuter, Gaurav Kumar, highlighted that traffic was affected near Haiderpur and Rohini East metro station.

At 8:30 am, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) recorded the humidity level at 100 percent. The weather department issued an orange alert for the city, indicating heavy rainfall and potential disruptions to road, rail, and air transport.

As for air quality, the Central Pollution Control Board reported that the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital was in the satisfactory range, with a reading of 83 at 9 am. An AQI between 0 and 50 is classified as good, 51 to 100 as satisfactory, 101 to 200 as moderate, 201 to 300 as poor, 301 to 400 as very poor, and 401 to 500 as severe. (With inputs from PTI)