Even as the Yamuna’s levels receded hourly by a few centimetres since Friday, several areas across the capital continue to remain waterlogged. At the Tibetan Monastery Market in Civil Lines, near Shahdara flyover, floodwater entered the area on Thursday and transformed it from a shopper's paradise into a mud-splattered abyss drowning in water. On Saturday, shopkeepers returned to the market — which was still submerged in knee-deep water — to take stock of their shops and reported significant losses. Popular for garments, souvenirs and food, the market has about 350 businesses, a majority of which sell men’s clothing. Many shopkeepers complained that they would have been better prepared had they been informed about the severity of the flood. “We are not blaming the government for the floods, but we do blame them for not informing us. if they had done so this time, we would have removed our stock,” said Ghanshyam Sharma, who owns a garment business. Sonu, who owns a watch business, added: “In 2013, we had removed our goods from the shops after we received a serious warning. This year, not a single person informed us, so most of us didn’t relocate our belongings.” “The flood has greatly harmed my business; over 500 of my watches are non-functional now after being submerged in flood water,” he added. Shopkeepers waded through the deluge, collecting water from their stores in a bucket and drying out their soaked apparel. Prema, who runs a garment shop, said: “The CM must have known about the severity of the floods, each shop in this area has borne losses of over Rs 5 lakh. Who will now carry the burden of our losses?” Blazer shop owner Subhash Yadav rued: “Over 200 of my blazers, each costing over Rs 2,000, are wet now.” However, a senior government official denied allegations that announcements were not made and said field staff had conducted regular munadi or public announcements since last week, asking residents of low-lying areas to take adequate measures. Meanwhile, others expressed relief that the situation has stabilised. “The water in the market was at least 8 feet deep on Wednesday, and I was worried it would take over a week to drain out. Thankfully, the water has receded by more than 5 feet now,” shop owner Monu said. Civil Lines was among several areas in North, Northeast and East Delhi that were inundated, with water even entering homes and affecting vehicular traffic. Many roads in the region, including the ISBT Shahdara Link Flyover, were closed on Wednesday. They are now open. Special Commissioner of Police (Traffic, Zone 2) SS Yadav said, “While the water level of the Yamuna has reduced, it is still high near Rajghat and Red Fort and the area remains flooded; Traffic Police have restricted movement at Geeta Colony flyover. Meanwhile, borders such as Singhu, Tikri and Badarpur have some amount of traffic.” He added that traffic in the city has seen an improvement compared to previous days: “Based on the reduction (of water), we’ll further reduce traffic diversions and restrictions.” Warnings unheeded, residents set out to play in water Meanwhile, residents and their families descended on waterlogged roads to take a dip and click selfies — despite warnings from the Chief Minister and Delhi Police. One such spot was the road leading to Rajghat and Red Fort, which are still closed to traffic and visitors. “I saw pictures of the flooded Red Fort on the news. Nobody in my family had ever seen that much water before, so we came here to take a look,” said Mohammad Ismail, a resident of Okhla. A police officer said, “Water has accumulated here (the area behind Red Fort) due to a sewer overflow. It emits a horrible smell, yet it does not deter visitors; over 5,000 persons have visited this place to play in the water since morning. We have been patrolling to ensure that there is no untoward activity.” Referring to a video of children playing in floodwaters, CM Arvind Kejriwal warned that such activity could turn fatal: “There are reports from many places that some people are going to play or swim in the water or are going for video Please don’t do this. This can be fatal. The danger of flood is not over yet. The velocity of water is very fast. Water can rise anytime.”
