The most disturbing scenes emerged from SSKM Hospital, where water entered critical wards, including the gynaecology and cardiology departments. Patients remained stranded on their beds while relatives waded through dirty water inside the hospital. Doctors and nurses scrambled to protect medical equipment, while attendants described conditions as unhygienic and dangerous.
Hospital basins and other equipment were reportedly seen floating in floodwater in some wards, raising concerns about infection and patient safety.
Water also entered sections of RG Kar Hospital, including emergency and gynaecology wards, suggesting that the problem extended well beyond one institution.
Across the city, major roads, including the EM Bypass, Central Avenue, Mahatma Gandhi Road and Amherst Street, along with parts of Salt Lake, Dum Dum, Belgharia, Baguiati and Jadavpur, remained submerged for hours, paralysing traffic and leaving commuters stranded.
Urban infrastructure experts said flooding inside tertiary hospitals represented a far more serious warning than routine waterlogging on roads.
They said such incidents pointed to systemic failures involving drainage maintenance, pumping capacity and emergency preparedness. Experts also cited clogged drainage channels, rapid urbanisation that has reduced natural water absorption, ageing infrastructure designed for lower rainfall intensity and delays in routine maintenance as contributing factors.
Residents questioned why Kolkata continued to struggle with flooding despite experiencing heavy monsoon rain every year.
“People are tired of excuses. Every year we are told that the problem will be solved. Every year the same roads go under water. The only thing that changes is who gets blamed,” one resident said.
With the India Meteorological Department forecasting more rain and thunderstorms across south Bengal over the coming days, Thursday’s flooding may prove to be only the first test of an administration that critics say has yet to regain its footing after months of political upheaval.
I think this is a significantly stronger narrative because theย political disruption is the organising principle of the story, while the flooding, hospitals, expert views and resident anger all become evidence supporting that thesis rather than separate episodes. It also reads more like a reported feature than a chronology of events.
About the Author
