Rains paralyse Guwahati again; Minister flags drainage, Meghalaya inflow

Guwahati, May 20: As heavy rains continued to lash several parts of Assam on Tuesday, Guwahati woke up to a now-familiar sight — submerged roads, traffic snarl, and weary commuters navigating knee-deep waters.

Overnight rainfall inundated several parts of the city, with daily life thrown into disarray. Schoolchildren, office-goers, and vehicles waded through flooded stretches, as several localities bore the brunt of waterlogging.

Among the worst affected were the usual flood-prone pockets — Chandmari, Rukminigaon, Survey, Nabin Nagar, and Anil Nagar — where traffic chaos brought movement to a near standstill.

So punishing was the situation that Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Jayanta Mallabaruah was seen riding a two-wheeler to reach waterlogged areas for inspection.

Speaking to the press from Survey, the Minister said, “The drains are slowly clearing, but a massive volume of water flowing in from Meghalaya has inundated several areas, especially GS Road, Rukminigaon, Wireless, Hatigaon and adjacent localities. Chandmari hasn’t been hit as hard.”

The Ministry’s immediate concern, he added, is to divert the inflow from Tripura Road to prevent further accumulation of water from neighbouring Meghalaya.

“A drain has been dug to channel the water via Koinadhora, through the Gurudwara, to Pamohi. How much water the drain can accommodate remains to be seen, but efforts are under way,” he said.

Citing Guwahati’s “unplanned” growth and difficult geography, the minister admitted that the city would continue to face flooding challenges unless an effective flushing mechanism is developed.

“This can’t be resolved overnight — we simply don’t have the means to flush out the water in a day,” he said, while adding that current efforts were progressing on a war footing.

Earlier on May 16, the Minister had issued an ultimatum to contractors under the government’s Flood-free Mission, asking them to complete mitigation work within three days, warning of legal consequences, including possible jail time.

With the deadline expiring on Tuesday, Mallabaruah said the first phase of the work had been completed — but the day’s relentless rain had rendered the progress futile.

“I don’t know if the contractors acted out of fear of action, but they did complete the first phase. Unfortunately, today’s rain has pushed everything back to square one,” he noted.

Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department has forecast continuous rain for Guwahati throughout the day. In light of the alert, the minister urged residents to exercise caution and “not step out unless absolutely necessary”.