Hyderabad: Intense rainfall in the catchment areas forced authorities to lift the gates of Himayatsagar and Osmansagar, releasing massive volumes into the Musi River. By midnight on Friday, the river surged through the city with unprecedented force.
Musi River floods hit colonies and traffic
At Chaderghat, floodwater rose six feet above the low‑level bridge, while at Moosarambagh it reached 10 feet. As the river kept swelling, panic spread across nearby colonies where residents spent the night in fear. Since heavy inflows filled the twin reservoirs, officials released 13,500 cusecs. Later, with upstream rains continuing, outflows climbed to 35,000 cusecs after 8 p.m., a volume not seen in recent years. Consequently, at the Moosarambagh bridge, construction material for an elevated bridge washed away.
Moreover, Ambedkar Basti and several colonies on both banks went underwater. Officials moved hundreds of residents to relief camps, while in Moosanagar, Shankarnagar, Rasoolpura, Kamal Nagar and Vinayak Veedhi, many families refused to leave until police forced them out. People carried belongings to GHMC shelters and safer locations. In addition, police closed traffic over Chaderghat and Moosarambagh bridges, disrupting movement between Dilsukhnagar and Koti. At Narsingi, ORR service roads went underwater, causing major traffic snarls. GHMC Commissioner R.V. Karnan urged citizens to stay indoors unless necessary. Meanwhile, floodwaters also submerged the Patancheru highway.
Flood impact spread to IT corridors, farmlands
At Hitec City, waterlogging forced municipal teams to use pumps to divert floodwater. Furthermore, police closed stretches from Kulsumpura to Puranapul, Chaderghat causeway and Moosarambagh bridge, imposing traffic restrictions. In Patancheru mandal, knee‑deep water flowed over National Highway‑65 between Isnapur and Rudraram. Additionally, the Esi and Musi streams submerged farmland on both banks, devastating crops. Farmers in Moinabad, Shamshabad, Shabad, Shankarpalli and Gandipet mandals reported heavy losses. At Shamshabad airport, adverse weather diverted several flights to Vijayawada. Notably, three Indigo flights from Mumbai, Kolkata and Pune did not receive landing clearance.