Hyderabad: Heavy downpour batters city, Batasingaram market hit hard

Hyderabad: Heavy downpour on Friday created havoc in the city causing widespread waterlogging in many parts of the city. This prompted the Hyderabad Traffic Police department to issue alerts as several roads were inundated and vehicles were stuck in traffic jams. The wholesale fruit vendors of Batasingaram market in Abdullapurmet suffered huge losses as tonnes of fruits washed away in rainwater.

Fruits worth lakh of rupees were wiped out due to rains in the Batasingaram market said the vendors adding that the fruit market turned into a river as rainwater got accumulated. Due to heavy rains, tonnes of sweet lime, apples, pomegranates and other fruits flooded in the heavy rainwater flowing from the market.

"All the vendors tried saving their stock but were only able to shift some to safer areas and sold them standing in the rains. The administration is not making any efforts to help us and only a shed has been put up but no proper arrangements are taken up to save the market and vendors from heavy rains," said a vendor.

The Friday rains also inundated several low-lying and residential areas and roads turned into lakes. Areas including Nizampet, Moosapet metro station, Alwal, Malkajgiri, Ameerpet, Hayathnagar, Jeedimetla, Quthbulapur, Kukatpally, Moula Ali, Chanda Nagar, Madhapur, Begumpet, Amberpet, Charminar, Shah Ali Banda, Falaknuma and Jubilee Hills witnessed heavy water-logging that disrupted the traffic and caused jams for several hours after which the city traffic police department had to divert the traffic as roads were submerged in rainwater.

While several vehicles including four-wheelers, trucks and two-wheelers were also inundated in Nizampet, Bolaram and Ameerpet. In Nizampet, the JCB had to push a inundated car from behind to clear the jam and save the people stuck inside the car. While in Vivekananda Nagar colony, pedestrians were seen in water up to their knees and were trying to get out from the inundated road. Due to heavy rains, the water inflows in the Hussain Sagar lake also increased and the lake was overflowing against its Full Tank Level (FTL) of 513.50 meters. In the Serilingampally area, rainwater flooded the Tulja Bhavani temple in Taranagar and devotees had to rush out of the temple as the sewage water also overflowed in the temple.

A devotee from the temple who immediately rushed out as the rainwater started entering the temple, Srihari Goud said, "The Taranagar area is a low-lying area and has always been facing flooding in every monsoon affecting the lives of people residing here."

He demanded the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to install a proper drainage system to avoid overflowing and flooding.

Other low-lying areas in Jeedimetla also saw heavy water-logging. Several families moved to safer places to save their lives but their household items and vehicles were washed away resulting in huge losses to the locals.