Opinion: When Rapidly Growing Cities Submerge

The French capital, known for its grand architecture and the picturesque river Seine, was hit by a deluge of rain during the Great Flood of Paris in 1910. It resulted in the Seine levels rising to an alarming 8.62 meters, flooding large parts of the city. Despite the engineering prowess of the era, Paris struggled for weeks to regain normalcy, grappling with waterlogged streets, compromised transportation, and damaged properties. The event left an indelible mark on the city's psyche, a stark reminder of the devastation an uncontrolled Nature could unleash upon a bustling metropolis.

Fast forward to the present, a similar tale is unfolding across cities in North India, though due to different reasons. These cities, burgeoning under rapid urbanization and population explosion, are witnessing a crisis each monsoon season, owing to unprecedented rainfall. The existing urban infrastructure, largely unprepared and insufficient to handle such extreme weather events, caves under pressure. Poor drainage, the rapid and unplanned urban sprawl, and the lack of effective flood control measures turn every downpour into an urban nightmare.

Streets turn into rivers, homes into islands, and daily life comes to a standstill as Indian cities like Delhi, Gurugram, and Mumbai grapple with inundation. The plight of these cities echoes the distress of the Parisians more than a century ago, underlining the persistent global challenge of urban flooding. It underscores an urgent need to rethink urban planning, embrace sustainable development, and invest in resilient infrastructure that can effectively combat the increasing threat of urban floods.