Heavy overnight rains brought Kolkata to its knees on Tuesday as the city was preparing for its biggest festival, Durga Puja, which will begin later this week. Though Durga puja officially begins on Sunday, Shashti, pandals are already up and so are the idols inside. These are not ordinary pandals in Bengal but works of art that are often times preserved in museums after the pujas are over. And reports say, that several of these magnificent pandals have been waterlogged and are likely to be unusable.
Across the city, vehicles lay stranded on arterial roads, commuters waded through waist-deep water at several intersections, and Metro services were suspended on a long stretch of the Blue Line. Traffic movement was severely affected at key intersections such as Park Circus, Gariahat, Behala and College Street, while long snarls were reported on EM Bypass, AJC Bose Road and Central Avenue. Several smaller lanes in south and central Kolkata were completely cut off.
Commuters complained of buses breaking down mid-way, while taxis and app cabs either stayed off the roads or charged exorbitant fares. Many schools declared a holiday as students and staff could not make their way through flooded streets. Calcutta University and Jadavpur University also suspended all academic activities for the day.