KOCHI: Several places in Kochi including Infopark in Kakkanad, MG Road, TD Road, KSRTC bus station, Ernakulam Junction railway station, Kaloor-Kadavanthra Road and areas near the JLN Stadium witnessed severe waterlogging in the first heavy downpour of the season in the city on Wednesday evening.
The heavy showers also resulted in traffic congestion at Kalamassery junction, Pathadipalam, Elamkulam, Vyttila and various other parts of the city. “Many people missed their trains as they were unable to reach the station in time,” said a passenger.
A major part of Infopark was left inundated, leaving many techies stranded after office hours. A video clip of water leaking purportedly inside an office on the Infopark campus went viral, but officials said it had nothing to do with the rain, rather it was due to a pipeline burst.
The water leakage was reported in the food court of Trans Asia Cyber Park Business Centre near Infopark.
“A water pipe broke, leading to the leak in their food court. They immediately rectified it,” said Infopark CEO Susanth Kurunthil.
He also said that water in the Kadambrayar rises because of the bund in the river and prevents the outflow of water from Infopark and Kakkanad areas.
“We have requested the district collector to break the bund. The collector has said he would direct the irrigation department to take the action necessary. Due to this bund, Kakkanad and Kinfra areas face significant flooding whenever it rains. If the bund is removed, flooding can be avoided,” Kurunthil said.
Meanwhile, water gushed into many shops on MG Road. Some of the houses and the roads leading to the residential areas at Ayyappankavu and Cemetery junctions were flooded. The VRM Road and the KSN Menon Road in Ravipuram also witnessed severe waterlogging.
“In just two hours of continuous rain, many areas were inundated leading to a loss of business for many people,” said Kerala Merchants’ Chamber of Commerce secretary P D Manoj Kumar.
The negligence of railway authorities in pre-monsoon cleaning of the culverts has also led to the severe waterlogging, he added.
Flooding was spotted in various parts of the HMT Junction division. Water also entered around 15-20 houses in the Moolepadam area.
“The residential areas near the Nippon Toyota witnessed severe waterlogging. We are aware of these vulnerable places. But the unexpectedly heavy rain worsened the situation,” said Nasheedha Salam, the councillor of the HMT Junction division.
Less trouble for Kalamassery
The Kalamassery Town Hall and the Kalamassery University Colony premises witnessed comparatively less waterlogging. The successful implementation of pre-monsoon cleaning has helped ease the situation in Kalamassery.