Incessant Rain Lashes Kolkata, Other Parts of Gangetic West Bengal

Kolkata: Incessant rain lashed Kolkata and its neighbouring districts on Saturday as a low-pressure area turned into a deep depression, an official said. As a result of the rains, waterlogging was reported from several parts of Kolkata, including the airport. Similar was the scene in the neighbouring cities of Howrah, Salt Lake, and Barrackpore. The situation would remain the same throughout the day, the weather office said.

Government and Weather Office Updates

The West Bengal government asked the people, mostly in the northern parts of the state, not to panic but to remain alert for the initial part of next week when there is a prediction of a downpour. Alapan Bandopadhyay, chief advisor to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, said that the CM was overseeing the situation 24/7 and was in touch with senior officials in the rain-affected districts.

Impact on Infrastructure and Services

According to the police, ankle-deep water was reported from parts of central and south Kolkata, but traffic movement was not disrupted. Waterlogging was also reported from inside the Kolkata airport, but flight services were not affected, an official said. "Both the runway and all taxiways are fully operational. However, a few parking stands are affected by waterlogging for which additional pumps have been deployed to drain the water from the operational area," he said.

Rainfall Statistics and Predictions

While Dumdum recorded 100 mm of rainfall since Friday, 81.1 mm was recorded in Salt Lake and 31.9 mm in the Alipore area in the northern and southern parts of the city respectively. "The low pressure over Jharkhand and Gangetic West Bengal turned into a deep depression. It is gradually shifting towards Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. This, accompanied by an active monsoon trough over the southern districts of West Bengal, resulted in the rains," he said.

Warnings and Alerts

The Met Department also warned of thunderstorms, accompanied by lightning. A 'yellow' alert for the Gangetic West Bengal districts, including Kolkata, was issued, while an 'orange' alert for heavy to very heavy rains was issued for Purulia, Murshidabad, Malda, Coochbehar, Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling, and Kalimpong districts. A red alert was also issued for the Alipurduar district.

Damodar Valley Corporation Controversy

Bandopadhyay alleged that the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) released a huge quantity of water in the last two days without informing the state government, leading to the inundation of several areas. "The member secretary of the Damodar Valley River Regulatory Committee has said that they will release another one lakh cusec of water. The state government expects this to be catastrophic for the state's people. The state has requested DVC not to release such a huge quantity of water without discussions,” he said.

Flight Disruptions and Airport Status

Meanwhile, flight operations to and from the Kazi Nazrul Islam (KNI) airport at Andal in Paschim Bardhaman district continued to be suspended for the second consecutive day on Saturday as the airport is yet to be ready for operations. The operations at the airport were shut down on Friday due to water logging in and around its premises. “Due to continuous heavy rains in Durgapur, we've had to cancel all flights scheduled for today. The prevailing rain has caused some operational challenges and waterlogging in various parts of the city,” tweeted IndiGo Airlines, which is the only company to operate in and out of the airport.

The water has receded from the airport premises, and the cleaning process is ongoing. We will be able to resume flight operations from Sunday, the spokesperson said.

(With inputs from PTI)