By IANS
Kolkata : A steady overnight downpour in the city and its adjoining areas submerged large parts, leading to two deaths, while more heavy rains were forecast Monday over the next two days.
A rickshaw puller, Sudhangshu Das, died in Salt Lake area due to electrocution, while another person died of lightning in Esplanade in the heart of the city.
The heavy rains affected the local train service on Howrah and Sealdah sections and brought to a halt the city’s circular rail service. Waterlogged streets led to traffic snarls as vehicles stood bumper to bumper on many city roads. Several vehicles were stranded in waist-deep water.
The worst hit areas are Mominpur, Behala, Alipore, Lake Gardens, Kasba, Kidderpore, Ultadanga and Dum Dum where people had to wade through waterlogged streets to reach their destinations.
Amid swelling resentment against the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), mayor Bikas Ranjan Bhattacharya said efforts were on to run the pumping stations to drain out the water.
People hurled abuses at civic officials in Behala area of south Kolkata where water flooded many ground floor houses.
The meteorological department said the city recorded 174.2 mm of rainfall since Sunday. It predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall over the next two days due to a depression over Gangetic West Bengal and Orissa.
Fishermen have been warned not to venture into high seas.