Widespread rain and thunderstorm activity on Tuesday hit flight operations at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, with at least 14 flights diverted and several delayed, officials said. The showers also led to water falling down from the false ceiling and into parts of the food court at the newly renovated Terminal 1 (T1), with several visuals of the same emerging on social media. A videograb of a flooded food court at Terminal 1 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport after heavy rainfall, in New Delhi on Tuesday. (PTI)

The airport operator acknowledged the incident, and clarified that it was due to overflowing drains on the rooftop.

“Delhi Airport witnessed sudden heavy rains this afternoon, due to which drains on the roof near the food court at Terminal 1 overflowed, leading to water coming down to the food court area. The housekeeping staff deployed there immediately cleared the area, and the operations remained normal,” said a spokesperson from the GMR-led Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), airport operator.

According to an official, the incident occurred around 3.30pm-4pm, and the problem was rectified in around 30 minutes. “Drains began to overflow when it was raining. As soon as the rain stopped, the water was cleared immediately,” said the official.

DIAL said it has already initiated efforts to identify and fix the problem in regards to these drains, keeping in mind the upcoming monsoon season.

T1 became operational on April 15, following which renovation was initiated at T2.

Multiple videos emerged online of water gushing down the false ceiling of T1 at the food court area. One such video, posted on X by the user Ananye, said, “Chaos at @DelhiAirport terminal 1 is falling apart due to heavy rains…”

Attaching multiple images of water in the food court area, another user Deepak Morya said, “This is the condition of Terminal 1, Delhi airport in rainy season….how could be anyone be safe…this is our best airport in South Asia… this is pathetic. This terminal is recently built…”

Flight operations too were impacted due to the adverse weather. An airport official said 12 flights were diverted between 3pm and 4pm. Flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed that over 300 flights were also delayed through the day, with an average delay time of 65 minutes for departures.