Monsoon-related incidents lead to 28+ deaths in Delhi over 2 months
New Delhi: Since the onset of monsoon in Delhi, more than 28 people have lost their lives in rain-related incidents - including those from drowning, electrocution, and building collapses - over the past two months. Families, friends of the victims and residents across the city have expressed frustration, blaming civic authorities for failing to prevent the tragedies. Amidst allegations of negligence, many questioned whether these deaths could have been avoided.
On June 28, the season’s first major downpour claimed the life of a cab driver when a portion of a canopy collapsed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport. In Vasant Vihar, three labourers were pulled from the rubble the next morning when a wall at a construction site collapsed due to heavy rain. Elsewhere, in Okhla, a 60-year-old man died after his scooter got trapped in a flooded underpass. Seema Patel, a shop owner in the area, lamented, “Every time it rains, that underpass becomes a death trap.The drains remain clogged, and exposed wires are still hanging dangerously.”
Just weeks later, three Civil Services aspirants drowned in the basement of a coaching institute in Old Rajinder Nagar after it flooded during heavy rainfall.
The victims’ families are not alone in their frustration. Shekhar Mishra, a 26-year-old Civil Services aspirant protesting outside the coaching institute, criticised the superficial nature of the city’s redevelopment efforts. “Every time there’s a tragedy, we see the same pattern — different authorities blaming each other while nothing gets done. How many more have to die before the authorities take real action?,” he asks.
The blame game between the civic bodies has only intensified in the wake of these incidents. Recalling the night of incessant rain on July 31, which led to the death of a Tanuja and her child, Priyansh, after they had fallen into a waterlogged, partially constructed drain in Ghazipur’s Khoda Colony; Ankita, 32, resident of the same locality, said, “It is almost as if waterlogging and deaths due to floods has become new reality for us. As soon as there is heavy rainfall, the drains get clogged and streets turn into rivers. I have given up all hope in the authorities.”
The MCD and DDA are blaming each other for drain maintenance, with residents frustrated by the inaction. “Bureaucratic in-fighting is costing lives,” said another resident of the area. “We don’t care whose jurisdiction it is. We want the problem fixed.”
Experts highlight that the city’s infrastructure struggles with heavy rainfall, with concrete surfaces causing excessive runoff. Environmentalist Ravi Vashishtha suggests deconcretising open areas and promoting green landscaping to address the issue.
