Infra woes knock on doors at dawn as rain pounds Bengaluru

Bengaluru: RB Kumar, a resident of Halasuru, woke up at 4 am on Monday as heavy rains pounded the city. His first instinct was to check if his street, just a stone’s throw from the rajakaluve (stormwater drain), had flooded.

For the next five hours, Kumar remained awake, listening to the rain hammer the streets. While five lanes in Gupta Layout were flooded, the water fortunately did not enter his house.

Kumar was not alone.

Bengaluru woke up to incessant rain and thunderstorms on Monday, prompting the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to issue an orange alert for the city. Many roads, particularly in the eastern and southeastern parts of Bengaluru, were inundated.

Areas like Halasuru, BTM Layout, HSR Layout, Silk Board, Majestic, RR Nagar, and Kengeri were among the worst affected. By 9 am, the skies began to clear in several places, but roads and areas prone to waterlogging had already been flooded.

"Since the rains began last week, Hennur Main Road has been blocked for about a kilometre every day. A stretch from Narayanapura Cross to Vaddarapalya Junction, which normally takes eight minutes to pass, took me 40 minutes today. I have never seen this kind of situation before," said K Subramanian, a resident of Hennur.

Slow-moving traffic was reported near Hebbal Junction, Amruthahalli Main Road Junction on Ballari Road, Trinity Junction, the Cantonment railway bridge, and Srinivagilu Main Road (Koramangala). Fallen trees worsened the situation.

People struggled to wade through stagnant water, with a viral video showing a woman with disabilities falling into a water-filled pothole in Varthur, while another video depicted people fishing in RR Nagar.

Techies clock in late

A spokesperson for the Outer Ring Road Companies Association (ORRCA) stated that while no tech parks were flooded, some companies reported delays in employees clocking in.

"We are working closely with authorities to address any issues that arise," he said. Many tech companies have employees coming in on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, while others have different schedules.

Rupesh Rao, who works in Marathahalli, said, "I was returning to work after five days, and just crossing the ORR towards Marathahalli took me two hours in the morning traffic. I was supposed to swipe in at 9, but reached the office only at noon."

Nightmare for Halasuru residents

Naresh, a resident of Murphy Town, was less fortunate. Water entered his house at 5 am and took two hours to recede. He blamed the BBMP for constructing a shop near the drain, which caused water to reverse flow.

"At least a dozen houses on my street were flooded, but the civic body has not fixed the issue despite knowing the solution," he said.

A BBMP engineer explained that a retaining wall is being built within the stormwater drain to divide the fast-flowing water from the neighbouring layouts. "When the stormwater drain from Halasuru Lake is full, there is a backflow into residential areas. We are working on civil infrastructure to ensure layout water flows into the drain," he said.

Drain collapse inundates 30 houses

Around 30 houses in VS Garden, JJ Nagar, were flooded after a drain collapsed late in the night. Residents, especially women and children, struggled to drain out water, which destroyed home appliances, grains, and books.

Austin Town residents faced a similar fate, with water entering at least 100 shanties near the Koramangala Valley.

BBMP downplays damage

The BBMP received seven complaints of uprooted trees and 97 reports of flooded roads. However, BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath downplayed the damage, stating only 30 houses were flooded.

"We received complaints about waterlogged roads, but no major complaints of water entering homes in the East and South Zones," he said.

Allocate Rs 5,000 crore for flood relief across state: Ashoka to govt 

Opposition leader R Ashoka on Monday urged the state government to allocate Rs 5,000 crore for flood relief efforts across Karnataka, with Rs 1,000 crore specifically for Bengaluru.

After inspecting the flood-hit Central Silk Board area, Ashoka criticised Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar for failing to take action despite multiple inspections.

Commuters struggle with cab, auto bookings

Commuters had a tough time booking cabs and hailing autorickshaws on Monday morning, facing repeated cancellations or steep charges, nearly double the meter rate.

College students and employees on the morning shift were particularly affected. "It is extremely difficult to find an auto when it rains. When Uber and Ola fail, we have to rely on traditional autos, but drivers demand unreasonable prices," said Sudha from Kumaraswamy Layout.

Autorickshaw drivers charged up to three times the usual fare.

Deepak, a private firm employee, said, "I waited for 15 minutes for the rain to stop before deciding to take an auto instead of riding my bike. It took me more than half an hour to find an auto, and I had to pay triple the fare."

Those heading to the airport, however, reported no difficulty in getting a ride, except for slow-moving traffic en route. For those who pre-booked cabs on Sunday for Monday morning, charges ranged from Rs 400 to Rs 600.

"I booked a cab the night before to reach college by 8 am, and it cost me Rs 600 one way. Cab fares are always on the rise when it rains," said Suguna Ramachandran, a second-year student at a college near Marathahalli.