Hyderabad rains: At least 15 dead in heavy downpour, govt advises residents to remain indoors

More than 15 residents of Hyderabad have died due to heavy rains in the city since last night, news agency ANI reported. The sudden downpour took the city by surprise as the flood-like situation engulfed the entire city in a matter of hours. Out of the 15 dead, three people have reportedly lost their lives after the wall of a house collapsed in the Gaganpahad area of Shamshabad in the city, the ANI reported. The state government has issued an advisory to all the residents of the city to remain inside their homes unless it is an emergency or extraordinary situation.

The state government also ordered the closure of all private institutions, offices and non essential services till Thursday in view of intense waterlogging in the city. The government has also encouraged all the private establishments in the region to resort to ‘Work From Mode’ for a couple of days in view of the emerging situation.

After the withdrawal from the Western and North Western parts of the country, the Monsoon withdrawal from the Eastern and Southern parts of the country got delayed this year due to the prevalence of low air pressure areas called depressions. The Weather department in its latest advisory said that the depression has moved from Telangana in the Westward direction and at present is prevalent over the region of Maharashtra and Karnataka. The IMD said that the depression at present is about 40 km north of Gulbarga in Karnataka & about 110 km east of Sholapur city in Maharashtra.

In a related development, the IMD also forewarned that some districts of Tamil Nadu including Theni, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi & Kanyakumari could experience light to moderate rainfall today. The IMD also said that Kanyakumari and Tirunelveli districts could receive heavy rainfall in the next 24 hours.

The SouthWest monsoon which enters the Indian subcontinent at the beginning of June is the primary monsoon wind that fulfils the water needs of the country along with recharging its water table. The monsoon progresses from the state of Kerala where it makes the onset to the remaining parts of the country in the next 30-45 days. The monsoon starts withdrawing from the country by mid September and completely leaves the subcontinent by the beginning of October.