Traffic was affected in Delhi due to waterlogging in many areas following incessant rains on Wednesday. (Express photo by Amit Mehra) Delhi Coronavirus (Covid-19), Weather Today Live Updates: The national capital recorded 1,398 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, taking the total count to 1,56,139. With nine more deaths, the toll also increased to 4,235. On Monday, the Delhi High Court expressed concern over the fact that Covid cases are still hovering around the 1,300 mark, “which shows that there must be a concentrated focus on ramping up lab testing in Delhi”.
Hotels in the Capital can finally reopen, with the Delhi government and Lt-Governor Anil Baijal’s office resolving their differences on the issue during a meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on Wednesday. A decision was also taken to delink banquet halls from hospitals and allow weekly markets “on a trial basis”, officials from the L-G house said. The Chief Minister’s Office said gyms will remain shut as of now.
Meanwhile, Delhi received heavy rains since early morning on Wednesday, leading to a drop in the mercury and waterlogging in some areas. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said more rains are likely during the day.
On Wednesday, heavy downpour wreaked havoc in the national capital and its satellite cities of Gurgaon and Noida, leading to inundation of rain water on roads and underpasses as well as traffic build-up in many areas. In its weather forecast issued Wednesday evening, the Met department said there will be “intense rainfall spell over central parts of the country during the next five days”.
Delhi rains, Weather LIVE: Incessant rains in the national capital led to waterlogging in many areas and affected traffic movement on key roads during morning rush hours, causing severe inconvenience to commuters. (File)
The India Meteorological Department has warned of heavy rains in the city on Thursday as well. The downpour may lead to "major traffic disruption" due to heavy water logging and there is an 'increased chance' of road accidents, it warned. The Safdarjung Observatory, which provides representative figures for the city, recorded 46 mm rainfall between 8:30 am on Wednesday and 8:30 am on Thursday. On an average, the city gauges 11.3 mm rainfall from 8:30 am on August 19 to 8:30 am on August 20 every year. The Palam weather station gauged 70.9 mm precipitation during the period, more than six times the normal rainfall.
Heavy rains overnight in Delhi and surrounding areas has led to severe waterlogging in some parts for the second straight day. The India Meteorological Department this morning said the rains are likely to continue till around noon and will subside thereafter. Delhi is likely to receive rainfall till August 25, the weather agency said. Visuals shared by news agency ANI showed a half submerged bus at an underpass in Prahladpur area in Delhi. While in Baraf Khana, locals were seen wading through ankle-deep water. Similar scenes were witnessed in Mayur Vihar and parts of Noida. The rains have, however, brought down temperatures to 26 degree Celsius in the national capital.
On Thursday, the number of cases rose to 2,836,925 after 69,652 fresh cases were registered within a span of 24 hours.
Close to 120 mm of rainfall in Gurgaon on Wednesday morning saw many stretches inundated and underpasses submerged. Rainwater also seeped into homes in several areas, with a 62-year-old man being electrocuted when he tried to turn off the inverter after water got into his house. According to police, the victim, Ashok Bakshi (62), was a resident of Sector 28. “Investigation showed that the ground floor of his house was wet because of the rain. He went to turn off the inverter and was electrocuted,” said inspector Manoj Kumar, SHO, DLF police station, adding that the family has not filed a complaint.
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday called for a concentrated focus on ramping up laboratory testing for COVID-19 in the national capital as 1,300-odd cases are still reported daily.
The high court also raised the question of migrant labourers returning to Delhi after Unlockdown-3 has been declared by the government and construction and industrial activity have picked up. A bench of justices Hima Kohli and Subramonium Prasad asked whether adequate arrangements have been made by the Delhi government at the borders and other places, where industries or construction sites exist in the national capital, for large scale testing to detect COVID-19 cases and for segregating them without causing any inconvenience.
The bench directed the Delhi government to file a detailed status report on this aspect. The court said it was a matter of "great concern" that though the number of COVID-19 cases were expected to climb down gradually or at least remain stable below 1,000 per day in August, 2020, the daily coronavirus cases have not steadily reduced in Delhi. It noted that the number of cases that had touched 707, 652 and 787 on August 10, August 16 and August 17 respectively, shot up to 1,374 on August 18. (PTI)
Heavy rains on Wednesday showed no mercy on Gurgaon where main roads, including underpasses, and those in interior residential areas were submerged in water, bringing traffic movement to a halt.
The 'Millennium City' recorded 26.5 mm rainfall from Tuesday night till 8.30 am on Wednesday, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Sohna Chowk, Sikanderpur, Golf Course, Himgiri Chowk, Bilaspur Chowk, and the roads towards Delhi and Jaipur reported waterlogging, the Gurgaon Traffic Police said. The most striking, however, was the inundation of the underpasses on the posh Golf Course Road where water filled the carriageways on both sides of the road stretch -- touted to be aesthetically among the best in the country. The traffic police said it deployed its personnel at crucial junctions in the city to regulate traffic on the waterlogged roads.
Hotels in the capital can finally reopen with the Delhi government and Lt-Governor Anil Baijal’s office resolving their differences on the issue during a meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on Wednesday.
Apart from hotels, a decision has also been taken to delink banquet halls from hospitals and allow weekly markets “on a trial basis”, officials from the L-G house said. The Chief Minister’s Office said gyms will continue to remain shut.
“The corona situation in Delhi is much better now. The economy of Delhi has to be brought on track. For this, we had already proposed opening all hotels in Delhi, which was rejected by the central government. We again requested the central government, and we are happy that now the proposal of the Delhi government has been approved. Now, all hotels in Delhi will be opened. At the same time, the weekly markets will be opened on a trial basis. In the meantime, everyone must exercise precautions and follow social distancing,” Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said.
The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on Wednesday gave approval for opening of hotels and weekly markets in the city, the Delhi government sources said. The decision was taken in a meeting of DDMA which was also attended by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal through video conference.
The proposal to open gyms was not approved in the meeting headed by Lt Governor Anil Baijal. The LG said gyms can be allowed to open in the coming days.
The weekly markets will be first opened on trial basis to assess the situation on the ground, the sources added. (PTI)
Delhi recorded 1,398 fresh coronavirus cases on Wednesday, taking the tally in the city to over 1.56 lakh, while the death toll from the disease mounted to 4,235, authorities said.
Nine fatalities have been recorded in the last 24 hours, according to the latest bulletin issued by the Delhi health department. The active?cases tally on Wednesday rose to 11,137?from 11,068 the previous day. (PTI)
Heavy rains lashed Delhi-NCR, particularly battering the satellite city of Gurgaon on Wednesday, flooding the low-lying areas and bringing the traffic to a halt.
Till 8.30 am, Gurgaon had recorded 23 millimetres of rainfall, he said. Gurgaon witnessed very heavy downpour since morning. The rains flooded many streets, turning them into small rivers, as traffic came to a virtual standstill at key stretches. An underpass on the Golf Course Road was also submerged underwater.
Many vehicles lay marooned on the roads as they got stuck due to the water. Police were also seen moving them to keep the traffic going.
The traffic congestion also brought back the memories of the rains in 2016 when commuters were stuck in a massive jam for hours. (PTI)
Kuldeep Srivastava, the head of the regional forecasting centre of the India Meteorological Department, said the axis of monsoon will remain close to the national capital till Thursday. Therefore, more rains are likely. Southwesterly winds from the Arabian Sea and southeasterly winds from the Bay of Bengal are also feeding moisture to the region, he said.
The downpour is expected to reduce rain deficiency in the capital.
A number of vehicles damaged in Saket area's J Block, after a side wall collapsed following incessant downpour in Delhi.
Delhi Police Traffic alerts in past 2 hours:
* Traffic is affected on Surajmal Marg in the carriageway from Satyam Nagar to Kasturba Nagar underpass due to waterlogging.
* Traffic is heavy in the carriageway from Dhaula Kuan towards Gyarah Murti due to breakdown of a DTC bus near Taj Hotel. Kindly avoid the stretch.
* Water logging reported at Bhairon Road Matka Peer (both carriageway).
* Traffic is affected on Ring Road due to waterlogging at I P Park Gate no. 2.
* Traffic is heavy in the carriageway from Lajwanti flyover towards Dhaula Kuan due to breakdown of a cluster bus near Lajwanti flyover. Motorists heading towards Dhaula Kuan are requested to take Mayapuri Chowk as alternative route.
Heavy rain disrupted traffic in Gurgaon this morning, with rainwater flooding most of the underpasses in the city as well as several stretches of roads. Around 3,000 police personnel were deployed to manage the situation.
Due to incessant heavy rain this mornig, waterlogging has been reported at BRT near Central School, Badarpur to Ashram, Badarpur flyover underpass, Sarita Vihar flyover underpass, Dhaula Kuan towards AIIMS carriageway, Moti Bagh flyover underpass, MB Road near Batra Hospital, Palam Flyover and Chhata Rail.
The Delhi Traffic Police has been constantly updating its Twitter handle alerting commuters about waterlogging at several intersections across the city.
Other areas which have reported waterlogging include Mayur Vihar Phase-2, Sarai Kale Khan to DND, Sashi Garden to Kotla, Seemapuri to Dilshad Garden underpass, MB Road at Maidan Garhi, MB Road at Anuvrat Marg, Apsara Border.
Traffic congestion has been reported at Ring road towards Bhairon Marg due to the ongoing construction work. "Traffic is heavy in the carriageway from Lajwanti flyover towards Dhaula Kuan due to breakdown of a cluster bus near Lajwanti flyover. Motorists heading towards Dhaula Kuan are requested to take Mayapuri Chowk as alternative route," it tweeted.
Waterlogging in Sahibabad area of Delhi after heavy rains on Wednesday morning.
Migrant workers returning to Delhi are being tested for COVID-19 on their arrival. People stood in line Tuesday at the Anand Vihar bus terminal to get a token, following which they joined another line to undergo rapid antigen tests.
While most getting tested had travelled from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, a few were inter-city commuters. Three doctors, 12 lab technicians and three staff members, who collect biomedical waste at government-run dispensaries, were deployed at the spot.
The migrants are required to register their mobile number to undergo the test. Officials said that if one does not have a phone, they can give a relative’s number or their Aadhaar card number. Those getting tested were assigned numbers, which were written on test kits. People were tested in batches and those who tested positive were informed in 15-20 minutes.
Dr Vikas Kumar, in-charge of the testing process, said, “Our aim is to get over 600 people tested today. We started on August 13, testing 211 people, and increased the number of tests by around 100 every day. Civil defence officers gather travellers and inform them about the tests.” Read more
In view of the “extreme adverse financial” crisis due to suspension of its services for nearly five months on account of Covid-19, the DMRC announced pay cuts for its 15,000 employees Tuesday. It is also struggling to repay installment of loans taken from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
“In view of the extreme adverse financial condition due to non-operation of Metro services, the following orders are issued: It has been decided that perks and allowances shall be reduced by 50% with effect from… August 2020, till further orders,” says the order issued by DMRC senior deputy general manager (HR) Sangeeta Shrivastava.
The order also put on hold all sanctions of fresh advances for House Building Advance, laptop, festivals. The advances already sanctioned and those sought for medical treatment, TA, DA will continue to be granted, it added.
The second round of serological survey, conducted in the first week of August across the national capital, has suggested that 28.35% of the people tested have developed antibodies against the novel coronavirus, it is learnt.
During the survey, more than 15,000 samples were lifted across 11 districts in Delhi to assess the spread of the virus. The samples were processed in 18 labs authorised by the state government for the rigorous exercise.
The previous serological survey carried out by the National Centre for Disease Control on a sample size of 21,387 showed that 22.86% of the people surveyed had been exposed to the virus. A serological survey involves collecting blood samples to determine whether a person has developed antibodies against the virus.
Incessant rains lashed the national capital on Wednesday, submerging low-lying areas in knee-deep water and affecting traffic on key roads during morning rush hours. The IMD issued an alert at 10:05 am for heavy rains in the national capital.
Thunderstorms and moderate to heavy spell of rains are very likely to continue over the entire Delhi and adjoining areas over the next two hours, it said. The downpour may lead to "major traffic disruption" and there is an "increased chance" of road accidents, it warned.
The Safdarjung Observatory, which provides representative figures for the city, recorded 7.4 mm rains till 8:30 am. The Lodhi Road, Ridge and Ayanagar weather stations gauged 9.2, 8.2 and 2.8 mm precipitation. Rainfall recorded below 15 mm is considered light, between 15 and 64.5 mm is moderate and above 64.5 mm is heavy. (PTI)