Shortly after the early arrival of monsoon in Kerala came the mayhem of urban flooding across India. On Friday, 30 May, heavy rain lashed Guwahati, disrupting normal life with half of the city inundated. The deluge plunged the city and other parts of Assam into darkness, as more than 100 transformers were shut down, leaving nine lakh people without electricity.

If that was not enough, at least 18 people were killed on Friday, and nine others were feared dead as the fury of the monsoon swept through eastern and southern parts of India.

Unlike earlier eras, much of the monsoon mayhem of late has been playing out in urban areas of Bharat, with more and more cities each year falling victim to sudden devastation caused by flash urban flooding.

Even before the arrival of the monsoon, the national capital Delhi witnessed 81.4 millimetres of rainfall in the early hours of Sunday, 25 May, within just a few hours — making it the wettest May for the capital since 1901.

Delhi was not alone in facing the fury of the rain gods. Mumbai experienced heavy rainfall on 18 May (even before the monsoon arrived), followed by record-breaking rains on 24, 25, and 26 May, with the city receiving approximately 135 mm and 164 mm on the 26th and 27th, respectively.

In Mumbai, the downpour was so severe that it not only flooded streets and roads, but also inundated the newly inaugurated swanky Mumbai Metro Line-3 (Aqua Line), with gushing rainwater submerging parts of the network.

Unsurprisingly, like Delhi, Mumbai too logged record-breaking rainfall in May. Santa Cruz recorded 324 mm of rain, while Colaba surpassed its previous May record of 279.4 mm set in 1918.

Delhi and Mumbai are in good company. Much before the monsoon arrived, Bengaluru, the Silicon Valley of India, faced chaotic conditions. Boats and tractors were pressed into service to rescue people as pre-monsoon showers battered the city, flooding many residential layouts and roads.

Like Delhi and Mumbai, Bengaluru too experienced record-breaking rainfall in May 2025, making it the wettest May in the city’s history. The city received 307.9 mm of rain, surpassing the previous record of 305.4 mm set in 2023.

The scenes witnessed in Bengaluru were reminiscent of the urban floods that have struck the city with increasing frequency in recent years — particularly in 2015, 2017, 2020, 2022, and 2023.

The key difference between this year’s urban flood mayhem and previous years is that earlier floods occurred either during the peak monsoon season or the post-monsoon period. But in 2025, it is the pre-monsoon showers that have led to floods and devastation. Four people have lost their lives in incidents of treefall, compound wall collapse, and electrocution.

The concern is that the monsoon has only just begun, and the IMD has predicted rainfall well above the normal levels this season.

The main and immediate reason for the most recent urban floods in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Guwahati, of course, is the sudden, high level of relentless rainfall within a few hours. But this........

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