Thunderstorms paralyse parts of Bengaluru again

Bengaluru: Ahead of the likely advance of southwest monsoon over Karnataka, intense premonsoon thundershowers swept across central and southwest Bengaluru Friday evening, flooding major roads and junctions, uprooting trees, and throwing traffic out of gear.According to India Meteorological Department (IMD), Bengaluru city saw 46mm of rainfall while HAL airport area received 20.8mm till 8.30 pm. IMD officials said rain is likely to intensify in the coming days as monsoon strengthens over southern peninsula and is expected to advance further.The evening downpour inundated several low-lying stretches in central Bengaluru, including Kumara Krupa Road towards Shivananda Junction, Queen’s Road towards Anil Kumble Circle, Vittal Mallya Road, and Cantonment Railway underpass near Mehkri Circle. Flooding was also reported at KR Market towards SJP Road.In southwest Bengaluru, major stretches on Mysuru Road, including Chamarajpet, BHEL Junction and Nayandahalli, witnessed severe waterlogging that led to long traffic snarls during peak evening hours.Traffic police personnel and civic workers were deployed at multiple locations to clear clogged stormwater drain inlets and ease traffic movement. Emergency personnel removed uprooted trees from Kumaraswamy Layout, Vidyaranyapura and Outer Ring Road near PES University after roads were blocked and commuters stranded for nearly two hours.On Thursday evening too, 68 trees were uprooted, mainly in west and south Bengaluru.