NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday offered condolences to the family members of those who died due to the torrential rains and floods in Kolkata, and urged both the state and central governments to move quickly to bring the city back to normal.Kolkata has been struggling with heavy rains leaving many areas, including Salt Lake and parts of the north and centre of the city, waterlogged. The downpours have left at least 10 people dead, nine of them due to electrocution.Tuesday’s rains were one of the city’s heaviest in nearly four decades, paralysing life in Kolkata and surrounding districts, disrupting air, rail and road travel, shutting schools and colleges, and prompting the state government to advance Puja holidays.”My thoughts are with the people of Kolkata and other parts of West Bengal as they endure the devastation caused by incessant rainfall and flooding,” Rahul said on X.The Congress leader also extended “heartfelt condolences to the families who have lost their loved ones.””I urge Congress workers to extend all possible support, and request State & Central Govts to act swiftly to help restore normalcy,” the leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha added. The city recorded 251.4 mm of rain in less than 24 hours – the highest since 1986 and the sixth highest in 137 years. The wettest day was in 1978, when 369.6 mm was recorded, followed by 253 mm in 1888 and 259.5 mm in 1986.The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said that the heaviest spell was between 3 am and 4 am on Tuesday, when 98 mm of rain fell in an hour. It clarified this did not meet the definition of a cloudburst, which is rainfall above 100 mm in an hour over a 20–30 sq km area.The rain turned main roads into rivers, disrupted Metro and train services, and caused chaos at the airport. The deluge comes just days before Bengal’s biggest festival, Durga Puja.
