Several schools in Hyderabad declared a holiday for students attending online classes on Wednesday, as heavy rains on Tuesday evening led to power outages across the city. Some schools, which were scheduled to conduct exams, postponed them to later in the week.
While the government has not officially declared a holiday, the managements of some schools took the decision, as trees and electric poles were uprooted in many colonies, leaving them without any electricity to attend online classes.
"We haven't declared any holiday yet officially. However, teachers whose houses are inundated and are not in a position to attend school due to water logging were asked to take a leave," Hyderabad District Education Officer, Venkata Narsamma told TNM.
Rains accompanied by lightning threw life out of gear in Hyderabad, inundating several arterial roads and flooding homes in low-lying areas. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said that a deep depression over north coastal Andhra Pradesh resulted in a depression over Telangana, which led to the heavy rain.
On Wednesday morning, the Hyderabad zoo announced that it was shut for the day due to the rains. Police requested commuters who were travelling to and from the airport to use the Outer Ring Road (ORR) and said that the old Kurnool road from PVNR expressway was completely flooded.
With water level in Himayatsagar reservoir on the outskirts of Hyderabad near Full Tank Level on Tuesday evening, officials opened the gates of the reservoir and let the excess water into the Musi river. People living in areas along the river were alerted and moved to safe places. The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), and especially its Disaster Response Force (DRF), is on high alert and has been conducting rescue and relief operations across the city.
Meanwhile, heavy rains in several districts led to overflowing lakes, tanks, streams and other water bodies, cutting off road links to dozens of villages.
The government hospital in Madhira town of Khammam district was flooded with rainwater. Knee-deep water was accumulated in the inpatient ward. Women with their new born children were seen leaving the hospital. Coal production in some mines of Singareni Collieries Company Ltd was affected due to the incessant rains. Crops in over hundreds of acres of land in various districts were damaged.
With IANS inputs