Torrential monsoon rains brought Gurgaon to a grinding halt on Wednesday evening, inundating major thoroughfares and paralysing traffic across the city. Several arterial roads, including Golf Course Extension Road, Sohna Road and Subhash Chowk, were submerged under 3 to 4 feet of water, stranding commuters during peak rush hour.
The downpour, which began shortly after the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a warning at 7:21pm for heavy rainfall, thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds of 30–40 kmph across parts of Haryana, resulted in hours-long traffic jams that extended into the night. The IMD warning remained in effect until 11:45am on Thursday.
A stalled vehicle at Rajeev Chowk triggered a cascading gridlock, with commuters attempting to reroute through flooded roads. Traffic congestion persisted well past 11:30 pm, and some motorists were forced to abandon their vehicles altogether, according to a report in The Times of India (TOI).
“I have been stuck for hours in waist-deep waters at Subhash Chowk. I finally managed to get the car out, but the gears got jammed. Water entered my vehicle too. It is a complete nightmare. I have no idea how I will reach home tonight. Cars are floating on Sohna Road,” said a Gurgaon resident, describing the harrowing situation to TOI.
The situation was equally dire in other parts of the city, with slow-moving traffic reported at Narsingpur along the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway, Hero Honda Chowk, Palam Vihar, Sector 48, Sector 31 and Sheetla Mata Road. Even upscale areas were not spared.
“Golf Course Road was completely waterlogged. What is usually a 15-minute drive took me over two hours. Water had entered the basements of some buildings, and several luxury cars were stranded. It felt like navigating a river, not a city road,” said a resident of DLF-5.
“We were stuck on the flyover at Rajeev Chowk for two hours, with no clue what was happening ahead. Rain was intense, and the thunderstorm made things worse. Everyone was honking out of frustration,” said Anil Sharma, who was among those caught in the jam at Rajeev Chowk.
Others were forced to abandon their vehicles in the rising waters. “I had to abandon my car near Sector 31 because it wouldn’t start after water entered the engine. I walked nearly 2 km in ankle-deep water to find shelter. It’s a disaster,” said a resident of Sector 51.
Office-goers, already weary from a humid day, were hit hard by the flooding. “Many of us chose to stay back at the office for an extra hour rather than getting stuck in traffic during the rain,” said an employee at an IT firm.
With roads impassable and cabs unavailable, pedestrians and two-wheeler riders were seen taking shelter under flyovers, bus stops and shop canopies. Several of them were caught off-guard by the sudden and intense rainfall.
Meanwhile, X users flooded the microblogging site with frustrated reactions and expressed outrage over the failed drainage system.
"Left office at 10 pm got stuck in the famous Subhash Chowk till 12 am which is just a 5-min walk away. Decided to walk back to the office and completely safe now! Reason: Couple of hours of rain resulting into floods and best drainage system in India!" a user wrote.
Another user commented, "Extreme flooding in gurgaon with rain, no proper drainage infrastructure. 1 hour for covering 4 kms, and still stuck on golf extension road."
"Cars floating, ambulance stuck. Venice vibes in Gurgaon. Our cities are not planned and there is haphazard construction leading to such a situation when it rains," a third user remarked.
See some other reactions here:
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Rajesh Mohan stated that police personnel had been deployed to key waterlogged locations including Sheetla Mata Temple Point, CRPF Camp Chowk, Sector 37 and Hero Honda Chowk.
“Moreover, concerned departments were immediately informed about damage to the main water pipeline on SPR, which caused flooding,” the DCP added.
Earlier in the day, Gurgaon had recorded 13mm of rainfall. The minimum temperature dipped to 25.4°C, 1.3 degrees below Tuesday’s level, while the maximum reached 34°C, 1.4 degrees lower than the previous day. However, most of the day remained hot and humid before the showers began.
The disruption raised serious concerns among residents about the efficacy of the city’s drainage systems, despite repeated assurances from authorities that pre-monsoon preparations had been completed.
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