Today, more than two decades later, the city's streets lie overgrown, and schools, apartments and shops crumble under the twin onslaught of time and the elements.

BBC: A day trip to Chernobyl

Take the capital city of India's Tamil Nadu, Chennai, a festering, overgrown metropolis that is often hit by water shortages.

ECONOMIST: Water

The city council said notices had been handed out to people who had let their allotments become overgrown or had not grown enough produce.

BBC: Overgrown allotment warnings issued by Brighton council