Hyderabad: All hell breaks loose

Hyderabad: Once again the city experienced hell following a two-hour downpour coupled with thunderstorms and gusty winds from 6 pm on Monday. According to the Weather office, heavy rains were due to 'Rolling Shelf Cloud’ syndrome.

The ‘global city’ had witnessed water-logging in all important areas, including the road in front of the new Secretariat. All roads got converted into mini tanks and life went haywire. Parents expressed concern as the Weather office has issued a red alert saying the state will witness heavy rains for the next three days. The main dilemma for them is will schools function or will the government declare a holiday? Hans India has been receiving phone calls as parents wanted to know if the government had taken any decision on educational institutions. “Hope they will announce early unlike the last time,” they said.

Road-users were cursing the administration as there is no proper outlet for rainwater to drain off. Everywhere whether it be, the IT corridor near IKEA centre, Financial district, Hi-Tec city, Mehdipatnam, Banjara Hills, Jubilee Hills check post, Punjagutta, Khairatabad, Rasoolpura. Begumpet, KBRt Park, Narayanaguda, Chaderghat and Madhapur cable bridge experiencing traffic jams. It was a chockablock on all these roads and the pace at which the traffic moved was slower than that of a snail! The worst affected were two-wheeler riders. 

“I am shocked to see that there was knee-deep water in front of the much hyped new Secretariat building,” said a techie.

“This is the road (Secretariat road) used by VVIPs and there is knee-deep water,” said a two-wheeler rider. She said this was causing serious problems for the two-wheelers with breakdowns in the midst of the water-logged roads. “There is no point in having swanky buildings without improving the drainage system. There is no water outlet and every year the problem resurfaces,” she added.

She said normally it takes 15 to 20 minutes for her to reach Sitaphalmandi from Somajiguda. But today it is over an hour and still she is stuck in traffic and does not know when she will reach home.

Another road-user at Madhapur said, “Life is hell in Hyderabad. What kind of administration is this? It took about two hours for him to reach Madhapur from the Financial district. I have seen many vehicles break down and the police have been struggling to shift them and clear the road.”

Meanwhile, GHMC has announced toll free numbers for any assistance: 040-21111111, 9000113667.