CHANDIGARH: Hours after rain lashed Gurugram on Thursday and the Millennium City recorded its heaviest single-day rainfall of the monsoon, Municipal Corporation Commissioner Pradeep Dahiya was transferred and posted as Deputy Commissioner of Rohtak, amid recurring waterlogging in the city during the monsoon. The reshuffle was described as a routine bureaucratic transfer and not linked to the rainfall.
Despite heavy showers, the city largely stayed afloat as civic agencies deployed pumps and quick response teams across low-lying areas.
A 2013-batch IAS officer, Dahiya, who also held the additional charge of District Municipal Commissioner, Gurugram, was transferred with immediate effect, according to an order issued by the Office of the Haryana Chief Secretary. Meanwhile, 2018-batch IAS officer Sachin Gupta, who was serving as Deputy Commissioner of Rohtak, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner of Ambala. The order did not immediately name Dahiya's successor as Municipal Commissioner.
Waterlogging was reported from several parts of the city during the day, but civic authorities claimed that water receded within 30 minutes to two hours in most affected areas. Officials said there were no major traffic snarls, vehicle breakdowns, casualties or significant inconvenience reported in residential localities.
According to official data, Gurugram tehsil received 97 mm of rainfall in the 24 hours ending 8 am on Thursday, the highest single-day rainfall recorded this monsoon, while Sohna recorded 110 mm, the highest in the district.
Sources said Dahiya had worked throughout the year to revive and upgrade the city's drainage infrastructure under the Municipal Corporation's jurisdiction, an effort they credited with keeping large parts of the municipal area largely free from waterlogging during the current monsoon.
According to the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA), several chronic waterlogging points that had plagued the city for years remained dry during the day. The GMDA attributed this to the revival of major drains and the completion of new stormwater channels ahead of the monsoon.
However, rainfall on Wednesday had exposed the gap between official claims and ground reality after Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini's cavalcade got stuck in a waterlogged traffic snarl near Sheetla Mata Temple.
The stretch, once considered a relatively minor waterlogging point, has now emerged as a major trouble spot, even as the GMDA and the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) maintain that the city's chronic waterlogging problem has been substantially addressed this monsoon. Officials had attributed the flooding there to sewage overflow from Rajiv Nagar into a stormwater drain.
Meanwhile, Gurugram Police on Thursday morning issued an advisory urging corporate offices and private institutions to allow employees to work from home to reduce traffic volume and ensure the smooth movement of emergency services. The advisory came after early morning rain left several parts of the city waterlogged, a day after a six-hour overnight traffic jam brought large stretches of Gurugram to a standstill.
According to the advisory, continuous heavy rainfall was likely to cause waterlogging at several major roads and intersections, resulting in traffic congestion.
"We request all corporate institutions and private establishments to allow their employees to work from home on August 6, 2026. Reducing vehicular movement will help keep traffic flowing smoothly and enable emergency services, including ambulances, the fire brigade and the police, to operate without hindrance," the advisory said.
