Explained: Why One Night Of Rain Left Kolkata Flooded As 10 Dead, Over 30 Flights Cancelled
Kolkata was paralysed by unprecedented rainfall, exceeding monthly averages in hours, leading to at least ten deaths and widespread flooding. Transport was crippled, and flights were cancelled.
Kolkata was left paralysed after a deluge overnight flooded major parts of the city, killed at least ten people and threw transport into chaos. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the city recorded 247.4 mm of rain between 8.30 am Monday and 8.30 am Tuesday, most of it concentrated in the early hours.
Why Kolkata Was Inundated After Just One Night of Rainfall
This single-day figure overshot the 178.6 mm Kolkata had received between September 1 and 22, which was already 16 per cent below normal, NDTV reported. Effectively, more rain fell in a few hours than in three weeks, leaving the “City of Joy” submerged just days before Durga Puja.
According to PTI, the IMD recorded 251.4 mm of rainfall in less than 24 hours, marking the sixth-highest single-day rainfall in 137 years and the heaviest since 1986. Between 3 am and 4 am, Kolkata received a maximum hourly rainfall of 98 mm, though IMD clarified this did not qualify as a cloudburst, defined as rainfall exceeding 100 mm in an hour over a 20–30 sq km area.
The IMD attributed the extreme rainfall to a low-pressure system over the northeast Bay of Bengal affecting coastal parts of Gangetic West Bengal, including Kolkata, Hooghly and Howrah. The weather office has cautioned that the system is likely to persist for another 24 hours.
Figures from the Kolkata Municipal Corporation cited by NDTV show some of the worst-hit areas: Ballygunge (295 mm), Gariahat (262 mm), Jadavpur (258 mm), Alipore (240 mm) and Mukundapur (280 mm). In south Kolkata, Garia Kamdahari recorded 332 mm in hours, followed by Jodhpur Park (285 mm) and Kalighat (280 mm).
IMD data highlighted the scale: Kolkata received 2,663 per cent more rainfall than its long-term average in the 24 hours ending Tuesday morning. Howrah registered 1,006 per cent more rain than normal, while North 24 Parganas logged 857 per cent above average.
The IMD has also warned of further heavy rainfall in Purba and Paschim Medinipur, South 24 Parganas, Jhargram and Bankura till Wednesday, with a fresh low-pressure system likely to develop over the Bay of Bengal around September 25.
Kolkata Brought to Its Knees
PTI reported that torrential rain paralysed life in Kolkata on Tuesday, with large swathes submerged, arterial roads cut off, and Metro and train services crippled. Traffic crawled on EM Bypass, AJC Bose Road and Central Avenue, while Park Circus, Gariahat, Behala and College Street saw waist-deep water.
Metro officials said services were suspended between Shahid Khudiram and Maidan stations, while truncated services operated on the Dakshineswar–Maidan stretch. Eastern Railway confirmed suspensions in the Sealdah south section due to waterlogged tracks, with skeletal movement in the north and main sections.
Mayor and Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim told news agency PTI, “So far, we have received information of four deaths due to electrocution in different places in the city,” though later tallies placed the figure at seven. Warning of further challenges, he added, “We fear that the high tide which is around 1.30 pm today may not help in our efforts to drain out the excessive water. It would be around 10 pm when the situation could be expected to improve.”
Over 30 Flights Cancelled, 31 Others Delayed At Kolkata Airport
Heavy rain also forced the cancellation of at least 30 flights and delaying several more, airport officials confirmed, as per PTI.
At Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, operations were hit hard as aircraft remained grounded amid poor visibility and continuous downpour. “At least 30 flights have been cancelled so far, and 31 others have been delayed,” an airport official said, attributing the disruptions to safety concerns triggered by incessant rainfall.
Mamata Banerjee Slams CESC, Calls Rain ‘Unprecedented’
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee described the rainfall as historic. Speaking to a Bengali news channel, she said, “I have never seen rain like this. I feel so bad for the people who have lost their lives in the torrential rains. I heard 7–8 people have died due to electrocution by open or unattended wires. It is so unfortunate… Their families must all be given jobs by the CESC. I am saying this clearly. We will also do whatever is possible to help.”
Squarely blaming the power utility, she said, “Electricity is supplied by CESC, not us. It is their duty to ensure people do not suffer because of this. They will do business here, but not modernise here? They should send people to the field and fix this.”
She also postponed all Puja inaugurations in Kolkata to supervise relief measures, while inaugurations in unaffected districts would go ahead virtually, news agency IANS reported.
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