Prayagraj: Thick clouds dominated the skyline over the Sangam city throughout Tuesday as intermittent rain continued to affect normal life and once again exposed the shortcomings of the city’s drainage system. Continuous rainfall since the morning led to thin attendance in schools and govt offices, while waterlogging was reported from several parts of the city including some police stations too.The maximum and minimum temperatures on Tuesday were recorded at 28.9 degrees Celsius and 25.5 degrees Celsius, respectively. According to official figures, the city received 46.7 mm of rainfall. Although the rain stopped around noon, normal life gradually began returning to normal as residents stepped out for work and other daily activities amid thick cloud cover.Waterlogging was reported not only from low-lying localities but even in the upscale Civil Lines area. Several roads remained submerged for hours, creating inconvenience for commuters. Localities such as Kareli, Allapur, Bai Ka Bagh, George Town and Lukerganj were among the worst affected, with rainwater entering several houses and damaging household belongings.Meanwhile, the release of 2.24 lakh cusecs of water from Kanpur Barrage on Monday is expected to raise Ganga’s water level further over the coming days.According to figures recorded at 4 am on Tuesday, Ganga was flowing at 78.08 metres at Phaphamau and 74.53 metres at Chhatnag. Yamuna’s level at Naini was recorded at 74.87 metres, eight centimetres higher than the previous reading.Officials of the irrigation department, however, said there was no immediate threat of flooding in riverside settlements but they are keeping a close vigil on the water being discharged upstream of both the rivers.
