The national capital and the nearby regions on 4 September received heavy rains, following which the roads were waterlogged in several areas and traffic was hit across the major junctions.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a yellow alert in the capital in view of the downpour
Earlier in the day, the IMD had predicted a moderate spell of rainfall over South Haryana, Delhi, west and northeast Uttar Pradesh, along with other states.
On Wednesday, New Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 25.2 degrees Celsius, with an 85 percent humidity level. The maximum temperature is expected to settle at 35 degrees Celsius, as more rain is predicted throughout the day.
According to IMD’s 10-day forecast for Delhi, the national capital is expected to experience rains and thunderstorms till September 14 and will continue to witness cloudy skies.
Why flooding, waterlogging take place in Delhi?
Speaking to Mint regarding the reasons behind flooding in Delhi, Nitin Bassi, Senior Programme Lead, CEEW, said, “The flooding in various parts of India, be it in Bihar, Gujarat, Assam, Delhi can be attributed to the increase in rainfall intensity and magnitude experienced this July and August compared to the last 30 years. There are specific reasons that accentuate the impacts of floods, such as poor regulation on land use changes, disruption of natural drainages and high runoff from growing built-up areas, ineffective implementation of policies to manage solid waste that ends up choking water bodies, and poor design of stormwater drains.. ”
The solution lies in revisiting the hydrological assessment of regions or cities to estimate the peak flood flow and volume at different scales, undertaking risk assessments to identify the flooding ‘hotspots’, managing flood risk through interventions such as redesigning drains, and strengthening the flood forecasting systems at the city and state level. A CEEW study shows that monsoons are becoming more erratic, and we are seeing more and more short bursts of heavy rain. City development must be water-sensitive by focusing on rejuvenating existing wetlands and water bodies and developing solid waste management campaigns to nudge community behaviour,” he added.
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