Heavy monsoon rain brought Gurugram to a standstill, with roads submerged, vehicles stranded and traffic snarled across the city within hours of the downpour beginning. Gurugram received about 82 mm of rainfall during its first major monsoon spell on July 7, quickly overwhelming the city's roads.
One of the worst-hit stretches was the Delhi-Jaipur Highway near Narsinghpur, where the main carriageway caved in, forcing authorities to shut two lanes and triggering a long traffic jam from Hero Honda Chowk to Kherki Daula Toll Plaza, reports said.
Videos Draw Venice Comparisons
Residents shared videos across social media showing streets turned into waterways, with several people wading through knee-deep water carrying their shoes, and others stranded by the roadside waiting for the water to recede. Another widely shared clip showed large stretches of road disappearing under water outside Airia Mall in Sector 68.
The visuals prompted a wave of reactions online, with several users likening the city to Italy's canal city. One social media user wrote that it was "a tough competition with Venice," while another joked in Hindi that the city goes under after the slightest rain.
In view of the continuing rain and the risk of further flooding, Gurugram Police issued an advisory urging corporate offices and private establishments to allow employees to work from home over the coming days, saying reduced vehicle movement would ease congestion and keep emergency services functional. Authorities also asked residents to avoid unnecessary travel until conditions improved. The episode has renewed criticism of the city's drainage infrastructure, an issue that resurfaces nearly every monsoon despite civic bodies' claims of desilting and upgrades ahead of the rains.
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