Gurgaon residents face traffic snarls, waterlogging after rains; authorities advise 'work from home' on August 25

Gurugram witnessed a massive traffic snarl at Subhash Chowk on Monday following heavy rainfall in the city, with vehicles moving at a slow pace amid waterlogging and disrupted traffic movement.

Several areas in Gurugram witnessed traffic snarls on Monday after heavy rainfall. Subhash Chowk was among the areas in the city that saw traffic snarls. Vehicles moved at a slow pace and many areas witnessed waterlogging. Roads, already battered by earlier rains, were worse off.

In view of heavy rainfall, Gurgaon District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA)advised corporate offices, government and private schools and other institutions to guide their employees and staff to work from home on August 25. The advisory was issued by the District Magistrate-cum-Chairperson of the District Disaster Management Authority, Gurugram.

The authorities said the measure was aimed at reducing traffic congestion and facilitating repair and maintenance work on roads and drains by civic agencies. Author-columnist Suhel Seth was among those who expressed their anguish at the waterlogging and traffic situation in the city. He said such scenes are witnessed every monsoon.

He accused authorities of apathy and said such a situation in a burgeoning smart city also acts as a dampener for investments. "It is an absolute shame that all of us who live in Gurugram live in the most pitiable state. We live in a state of absolute misery; there are floods every monsoon and every monsoon promises are made by every Govt, by every municipal official - that things will be sorted. But it doesn't happen. Every year they are dying because they are electrocuted in flooded waters, traffic has come to a standstill...Tell me who wants to invest in India if this is the state of its smart cities. Do we not have solutions...This repeats year after year...The apathy is galling. What is worse is that we, as citizens, raise these issues but no one cares," he said.

Suhel Seth said solutions should be found to problems of drainage and sewage. "Why should it take some of our brightest engineers so long to fix drainage and sewage? 1) Rampant corruption in granting building licenses. 2) They are being given licenses at will. 3) There is no accountability...It is an absolute shame...What kind of Brand India are we building?...The people don't matter anymore. We are losing the plot...We have a problem for every solution; we are not building solutions," he said.

The Gurgaon DDMA advisory said that heavy rainfall in the district on Monday has raised the possibility of waterlogging at various locations, which could affect traffic movement. Corporate offices and government and private schools and institutions in the district have therefore been advised to guide their employees and staff to work from home on August 25. The administration said the work-from-home advisory would help avoid traffic congestion and allow civic agencies to carry out repair and maintenance work on roads and drains more smoothly.

Gurugram Deputy Commissioner urged citizens to cooperate with the advisory and plan their travel accordingly. (ANI)