Double Whammy: Bhopal Battles Blackout and Dry Taps To Continue Till Saturday

Bhopal: The city is reeling under a crippling crisis as one-third of the city goes dry, power lines collapse, and a thunderstorm adds fresh misery, leaving residents bracing for darkness and thirst until Saturday.“The repair of the Kolar water supply could not be completed on Thursday, while a citywide power outage further worsened the crisis. We urge residents to conserve water. Supply from Kolar is expected to resume by Saturday,” said Bhopal Municipal Corporation commissioner Sanskriti Jain.Officials said outages are likely to hit major water sources including Narmada, Upper Lake and Kerwa on Friday, worsening the ongoing Kolar disruption since Tuesday.Pre-monsoon storms with winds up to 70 kmph brought trees down, blocked roads and triggered traffic snarls. Nearly 300 electricity feeders were damaged, plunging large parts of the city into darkness. Residents said daily life has been severely hit. “We haven’t had water since Tuesday, and now the lights are gone too,” said Sameer from Ginnori. Tanker demand has surged, with private water supply rates doubling in some colonies.Citywide water disruption looms as power cuts hit pumping systemsBhopal faces the prospect of a citywide water shortage after prolonged power cuts disrupted pumping operations at the Kolar Water Supply Project.Officials said electricity failure halted pumping and storage, affecting distribution across both old and new areas including Shahjehanabad, Arera Colony, MP Nagar and Kolar. With disruption continuing for the third day, residents are likely to face acute shortages, with many depending on tanker supply.Officials warned that restoration depends on stabilising power supply to pumping stations, adding that repeated outages could deepen the crisis further.Bhopal swings from hill-station chill to stormy winds in a single dayCity witnessed sharp weather variations on Thursday, from unusually cold conditions to strong winds, thunderstorms and rain that disrupted daily life.The city recorded its coldest night of the season after Pachmarhi, with a minimum of 20.0°C, nearly eight degrees below normal. Pachmarhi recorded 18.8°C.By evening, winds up to 70 kmph brought the city to a standstill between 6.30 pm and 7 pm, followed by heavy rain that caught commuters off guard. The storm caused waterlogging, traffic jams, power cuts and uprooted trees. Signboards and temporary structures were damaged. Bairagarh recorded 21 mm rainfall. The maximum temperature stood at 37.4°C, about four degrees below normal. Hail was also reported in the district in the past day.Trees uprooted, roads flooded as rain paralyses traffic movementRain and strong winds disrupted traffic across Bhopal, with uprooted trees, flooding and power cuts causing major congestion at key junctions.Link Road No. 2 was among the worst hit, with fallen trees blocking movement. Heavy jams were reported at MP Nagar, Mata Mandir, Lalghati, Board Office and Polytechnic Square. Commuters remained stranded for long periods as traffic moved slowly until clearance operations began after rain eased.Officials said disruptions were caused by multiple rain-related incidents, including fallen trees, waterlogging and power failures. Civic and traffic teams were deployed for restoration.Storm batters BMC HQ, exposes civic infrastructure gapsA sudden storm with heavy rain exposed vulnerabilities at the newly inaugurated BMC headquarters, Atal Bhawan. Strong winds shattered glass panels, flooded the basement and disrupted power supply. Hoardings outside the building were torn down, while staff moved through dark staircases after lift failure.An employee was injured after slipping inside the building.Across the city, emergency teams handled complaints of fallen trees, blocked roads and damaged hoardings. Areas affected included Link Road, Shyamla Hills, MP Nagar, Airport Road and Kolar. Large hoardings collapsed in some places, damaging parked vehicles. Officials said the incident raised concerns over civic preparedness.Is the mayor being heard? Sanitation gaps persist despite repeated ordersBMC HQ Atal Bhawan became the centre of frustration as Mayor Malti Rai reviewed the pre-monsoon drain-cleaning drive and found poor on-ground execution.“I gave instructions four hours ago, yet the garbage is still lying uncollected,” she said during the review meeting. Zone-wise reports showed uneven progress, with some data questioned for accuracy. The mayor flagged unclean drains even in her constituency, pointing to a gap between reports and reality. The absence of some zone officials added to concerns over accountability. The mayor warned that delays in drain cleaning could increase risks of waterlogging and disease during monsoon.NSUI also staged a protest, demanding focus on infrastructure over administrative inefficiency.