Overnight rain inundated several roads across the city on Friday — crippling traffic, toppling trees, and causing at least two house collapses.
Most of the waterlogged stretches were in north and central Calcutta, civic officials said. Roads in Salt Lake and New Town were also flooded, residents and commuters reported.
Bidhan Sarani, Central Avenue, BB Ganguly Street, Amherst Street, Camac Street, Burdwan Road, VIP Road, and Biswa Bangla Sarani in Salt Lake were underwater for much of the morning and afternoon.
Parts of Park Street near Stephen Court and Shakespeare Sarani near The Astor were waterlogged. Medical College Kolkata and the adjoining School of Tropical Medicine were also flooded.
Commuting disruptions
By 10am on Friday, roads from north to south Calcutta and Salt Lake were underwater.
A man in his 40s, driving to College Street around noon, had to abandon his plans. “From the Shyambazar five-point crossing, no vehicle was entering Bhupen Bose Avenue. People said there was severe waterlogging and vehicles had stalled,” he said.
“I called a friend on College Street. He said water was gushing inside cars when people opened doors. I didn’t try to go any further,” said the college teacher.
Several roads in New Town were also flooded.
Water had breached the roads and inundated pavements in New Town.
A resident of AB Block said the area around her home looked unrecognisable. “The water had entered the footpath,” she said.
School attendance dropped across the city. Some schools kept gates open longer to accommodate students delayed by the rain.
Madhumita Sengupta, principal of BDM International, said attendance dropped by 30 per cent. “Many children came with wet shoes and socks. They were asked to remove them to avoid catching a cold,” she said.
At The Newtown School, many students arrived late. “The last student came by 8.30am, 30 minutes late. But no one was sent back,” said principal Satabdi Bhattacharjee.
Traffic snarls
A Kolkata Police traffic officer said waterlogging on Biswa Bangla Sarani — leading to the Wipro crossing from Chingrighata — severely disrupted traffic headed to Salt Lake.
“Vehicles going to Salt Lake and New Town, where many offices are located, were stuck on EM Bypass and the Parama flyover. The jam stretched beyond the Parama flyover, all the way to the AJC Bose Road flyover above Camac Street,” the officer said.
Police had to stop vehicles from entering the Parama flyover from Park Circus as it was already choked.
Bidhannagar mayor Krishna Chakraborty acknowledged pockets of waterlogging due to the overnight deluge but added, “It was not severe.”
Drainage scrutiny
At the monthly Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) councillors’ meeting on Friday, mayoral council member (drainage) Tarak Singh said the civic body had focused on 34 chronic waterlogging points.
Sources said these areas have repeatedly been inundated this monsoon, raising questions about drainage efficiency.
“We are opening and cleaning gully pits. If they are choked, it can delay water drainage. We want to rule that out,” Singh told The Telegraph.
During the weekly Talk to Mayor programme, Firhad Hakim received multiple calls about waterlogging in Narkeldanga, New Ballygunge, and Canal South Road. “We will drain all water within five hours after heavy rain ends. Some areas, like Behala, may be exceptions due to poor drainage,” Hakim said. He also praised KMC engineers for draining out water quickly after the rain stopped.
Trees, buildings collapse
At least two trees were uprooted Friday morning — one outside Bidhan Shishu Udyan near Ultadanga and another on Ballygunge Park Road. “The Ballygunge tree had a very large canopy,” a KMC official said.
A Kolkata Police statement stated that the balcony of a three-storey old commercial building on BB Ganguly Street collapsed around 9.30am. On Sudhir Chatterjee Street in Girish Park, a part of a third-floor wall collapsed. No injuries were reported.