Kolkatans breathe easy as monsoon shows face again
Kolkata: A smart shower in the afternoon on Wednesday brought a welcome respite from the sultry weather, under which Kolkata has been reeling for the past one week.
Sanjib Bandyopadhyay, deputy director, Regional Meteorological Centre, Alipore, said that in the next 48 hours, South Bengal districts, including East Midnapore, South and North 24-Parganas will receive moderate to heavy rainfall. North Bengal is likely to receive heavy rainfall on Saturday and Sunday.
The rain hit the city at around 11.30 am, bringing much needed relief for the citizens.
There was rainfall in all parts of Kolkata, unlike the trend where the city received sectional rain, with some parts receiving heavy rainfall and minimum or even no rainfall in others.
The Manicktala pumping station of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) recorded 24 mm rainfall at 12 noon.
The rainfall recorded at Belgachia, Dhapa, Topsia and Palmerbazar during that period are 30 mm, 34.6 mm, 45 mm and 35 mm respectively. There was rain at Chetla, Ballygunge, Kalighat and its neighbourhood as well.
Traffic movement near Tank number 3 in Salt Lake was affected, after a tree got uprooted and blocked the road. The conservancy workers of Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) removed the tree to restore traffic.
The movement of traffic was also affected near City Centre 1, after branches of a tree fell and blocked a stretch on the main thoroughfare. There was knee deep water on the road near Milan Mela ground.
South Bengal districts like Murshidabad and Nadia received moderate rainfall. Bandopadhyay said because of the rain, the discomfort factor has gone down and the temperature has also dropped considerably.
The officials of KMC reiterated that all the pumps are functioning and the underground sewer lines have been cleaned. The duration of waterlogging will be less this year, they said.
Meanwhile, animal lovers in the city have urged people to let stray animals into their premises during heavy rain. "Please let them in during the rains. It will take a few minutes to clean up the mess they create, if any, but a life will be saved," they said.
