Raj Bhavan Road in the central business district during pre-monsoon rain in Bengaluru on May 13, 2025.
| Photo Credit: Murali Kumar K

The spell of heavy rain and gusty winds that hit Bengaluru on May 13 evening and night once again exposed the chinks in the city’s civic infrastructure.

Commuters had a tough time navigating inundated and water-logged roads, not only on May 13 evening, but also the next morning with office-going traffic out of gear in many stretches on May 14. For instance, the railway underbridge at Hoodi, an important link, was flooded on May 14 morning as well, said K. R. Puram traffic police on social media platform X.

Several trees and branches that had fallen on May 13 night had not been cleared, disrupting traffic in many areas.

Significant water-logging was observed on the Nagavara-Hebbal flyover stretch on Outer Ring Road, Hebbal-Jakkur stretch, Hunasamaranahalli on Ballari Road, Hoodi railway underpass, Electronics City flyover, among other places.

“From Mehkri Circle till Jakkur, the road was heavily waterlogged. As there was water-logging on the Hebbal flyover, traffic moved at a snail’s pace. Many were stuck on the road on two-wheelers. While even in peak traffic hours, it usually takes 15-20 mins to cross Hebbal, it took over 35 mins on May 13 night even after 10.30 pm,” said R. Saroja, a resident of Yelahanka.

A senior traffic official said that they had observed significant water-logging at 33 locations on May 13 evening, and had reported the same to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). “Many of these stretches have been seeing inundation and water-logging almost with every spell of rain. We have repeatedly flagged these spots to the civic body, but haven’t seen any change on the ground. While clogged drains are a key concern and need regular maintenance, some of these stretches need engineering interventions, but we don’t know why they are not being carried out,” the official said.

For instance, the Veerannapalya stretch between Nagavara and Hebbal, inundation on Hebbal and Electronics City flyovers were an issue that had come to the fore during the 2024 monsoon as well.

Senior engineers of the BBMP were unavailable for a response.

Likewise, despite multiple special drives and calling upon members of the public to report aging and dangerous trees to be removed and pruned, nearly 40 trees and over 125 branches fell on May 13 evening alone. Recently, an autorickshaw driver was killed after a tree fell on the vehicle.

“The wind speed in the city on May 13 was high. More than the rain, trees have fallen due to wind. Not just old and brittle trees, even many healthy green trees have fallen,” said B. L. G. Swamy, Deputy Conservator of Forests, BBMP, adding all of them would be cleared by May 14 evening.

Tree conservation activist Vijay Nishanth said that most of the tree falls could be attributed to choking of their roots by concrete. “A majority of the trees falling are brittle trees like copper pods. We need to take along ward committees to monitor trees in their areas, and maintain them through pruning and other activities. If we choke their roots, the trees will be more susceptible to falling. We need to address that in the city,” he said.