Heavy rain brings Bengaluru to a crawl; walls collapse, cabs surge

Multiple spells of heavy rain battered Bengaluru on Tuesday evening, inundating large parts of the city, slowing traffic to a crawl and leaving office-goers stranded on their way home.

In Domlur, a section of the compound wall of a military campus gave way, reportedly trapping four cows beneath the debris. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) sent a civic team to carry out a rescue operation. A second compound wall collapsed at Nanjamba Agrahara. Neither incident resulted in injuries.

Central Bengaluru bore the brunt of the flooding, with waterlogging reported at Mayo Hall Court Junction, Garuda Mall Junction, Trinity Circle, Anil Kumble Junction, UB City Junction, ASC Centre (HAL) Airport Junction and Tonique Junction, among other key points.

A senior traffic officer said the evening rush was badly hit, with knee-deep water at several locations. Because the rain arrived during peak hours, when many commuters were already on the road, even the connecting routes became gridlocked, the officer said.

Commuters faced additional hardship in finding cabs and autorickshaws, with fares rising sharply. Several areas in east and southeast Bengaluru also reported power outages.

Civic bodies and the Bengaluru Traffic Police reported tree falls at multiple locations, including near the Shivajinagar bus stand, near CB Road Junction towards ESI Junction, and near Hosmat Hospital towards Rajamohan Roy Road. More than three trees were uprooted.

Flooding was witnessed at Kalpana Circle near Mount Carmel College, Sankey Road near High Grounds, SJP Road, RV Teachers College and T. Mariappa Road, all of which were later cleared. The stormwater drain on Nala Road overflowed, disrupting traffic movement, while waterlogging at the K.R. Market up-ramp in Chamrajpet triggered chaos along Mysuru Road.

Other affected stretches included Anepalya Junction towards Mico Junction, Wilson Garden 10th Cross towards Dairy Circle, the Ayyappa Underpass in Madiwala towards Madiwala Police Station, NGO Gate towards Passport Office Junction, Koramangala Inner Ring Road towards Indiranagar 100 Feet Road, and the Peenya flyover towards the city.

Civic agencies and the traffic police worked jointly to clear stagnant water at several spots, even as vehicles moved at a snail's pace.

Aisiri Srinivas, a Koramangala resident, said her commute home from an office near Vittal Mallya Road cost nearly double the usual amount. She said an autorickshaw that normally charges ₹170 to ₹190 demanded ₹250, and after repeated fare increases and a tip, she ended up paying close to ₹400.

Nakul S., who lives in Yelahanka, said the trip home from M.G. Road took nearly two hours against the usual 70 to 75 minutes. He cited waterlogging on the Hebbal ramp, besides congestion at Anil Kumble Junction and Tonique Junction, as reasons for the delay.