HYDERABAD: Passengers from Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station (MGBS) in Hyderabad were rescued by Disaster Response Force teams as floods in the Musi River inundated the biggest bus station in Telangana.
A dramatic rise in the flood level in Musi after midnight due to massive discharge from the twin reservoirs of Himayat Sagar and Osman Sagar since Friday, submerged both bridges in MGBS premises, trapping a large number of passengers.
Water from the overflowing river entered the platforms at the sprawling facility, forcing authorities to stop bus services and launch an operation to rescue trapped passengers.
Teams of Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) and Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), along with the Police and Fire Services Department, swung into action to rescue the passengers.
Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy directed authorities to safely evacuate passengers trapped in the flood.
Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) diverted buses coming to MGBS from various places in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh to other points in the city.
Officials said it was an unprecedented situation at MGBS, said to be one of the biggest bus stations in Asia.
Musi, which flows through the city, was flowing dangerously, inundating parts of the residential colonies abutting the river. About 1, 000 people from Shankar Nagar, Vinayaka Veedhi, Moosa Nagar, Padma Nagar and other areas in Chaderghat were shifted to relief camps.