Why India’s Millennium City has a recurring monsoon crisis

Gurugram’s waterlogging is no longer an annual surprise. Every year, heavy rain leaves roads, lanes and residential areas submerged, triggering a familiar cycle of complaints.

Over the past few decades, rapid urbanisation has transformed the city’s landscape. Ponds, wetlands and open spaces that once absorbed rainwater have increasingly been replaced by concrete. One report estimates that Gurugram has lost around 389 water bodies and several open spaces during this expansion.

The city’s geography also matters. The Aravalli hills lie on one side and the Najafgarh drain on the other, creating a natural gradient for rainwater to flow through the city. Dams and drainage channels once helped manage this flow, but rapid construction has put increasing pressure on the natural drainage system.

Authorities have added pumps, cleaned drains and undertaken repairs and widening projects to tackle the problem. Yet, during heavy rain, several parts of the city continue to flood.

So why does a city celebrated as India’s Millennium City struggle with a problem that returns every monsoon?

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