Two child deaths, a road cave-in and flooded streets: Is Delhi-NCR ready for the monsoon?

New Delhi: Questions over public safety and civic preparedness have resurfaced after two children died in separate drowning incidents in waterlogged areas of Delhi-NCR on Thursday, as heavy rain triggered widespread flooding, traffic disruption and infrastructure damage across the region.

In the most tragic incident, a three-year-old girl drowned in a flooded lane outside her home in Ghaziabad after nearly three feet of rainwater accumulated in the area.

According to local residents, the child's body was recovered around four hours after she went missing.

The girl's family, joined by residents of the locality, staged a protest on National Highway-9 (NH-9), placing her body on the road and raising slogans against the civic authorities. Protesters demanded accountability, alleging that repeated complaints about chronic waterlogging had gone unaddressed.

Ram Kumar, a resident of the area, claimed the flooding had worsened after the widening of a nearby stretch of NH-9. He alleged that representations had been made to the municipal corporation on multiple occasions, but no corrective action had been taken.

The tragedy came as torrential rain paralysed several parts of the National Capital Region, leaving roads submerged and commuters stranded. Areas including Shastri Nagar in Ghaziabad witnessed severe flooding, with waterlogged roads disrupting traffic for hours.

In another incident highlighting the impact of the downpour, a section of road in Ghaziabad's Vasundhara Sector 13 collapsed beside an under-construction basement, causing a parked car and a scooter to plunge into the crater.

A nearby electricity pole also tilted into the excavation. Although no injuries were reported, the vehicles were extensively damaged.

The owner of the vehicles alleged that the builder had excavated nearly 20 feet for a basement without adequate safety measures and that continuous rainfall caused the adjoining road to cave in.

Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Delhi in Badli, a seven-year-old boy allegedly drowned in a flooded plot after stepping out to relieve himself, adding to concerns over the dangers posed by waterlogged public spaces during the monsoon.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued rain alerts for Delhi-NCR, forecasting more spells of heavy rainfall over the coming days.