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Heavy rains snarl traffic, shut schools in Mumbai and close-by areas

Torrential rain lashed India's financial capital Mumbai, triggering floods and killing at least four people along with paralysing the city and forcing schools to close on Thursday before relieving a little in the afternoon.

Some parts of Mumbai tape-recorded around 275 mm (11 inches) of rain on Wednesday evening, which crippled road traffic and delayed the trains countless city residents utilize every day.

Four people passed away from rain-related events, officials stated.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi cancelled a trip to the city of Pune, almost 200 kms, (124 miles) from Mumbai, after authorities declared a red alert due to the rain.

With more rain expected in Mumbai too, authorities likewise provided a citywide red alert and urged homeowners to stay home. Schools and colleges were shut and anglers were asked to stay away onshore up until Friday.

Drone video footage posted on social media showed snarled highways obstructed with vehicles - some with their chauffeurs still inside, others deserted by frustrated drivers. Numerous countless commuters invested hours on the road.

India's monsoon rains began retreating from the northwest of the nation previously this week, almost a week later than normal, the state-run India Meteorological Department (IMD) stated in a declaration.

The monsoon normally begins in June and begins to retreat by Sept. 17 but the rains continued this year, which has actually assisted to renew tanks but damaged the crop harvest in some states.

Heavy rain was also anticipated for some parts of the southern state of Telengana on Thursday, the weather condition office stated.

In neighbouring Bangladesh, rain brought relief after a week of extreme heat, however it likewise flooded streets, intensifying the already bad traffic in the capital Dhaka and other parts of the country.

(source: Reuters)