After intense heatwave that prevailed for over a week, people saw relief from heat as rain and strong winds lashed parts of Delhi-NCR on Wednesday morning, bringing respite from the soaring temperatures which crossed 44 degrees Celsius at some parts in northern India.
Dark clouds hovered over the region as storms and rain began in the early hours as a result of western disturbances, which triggered atmospheric activity that pulled down temperatures with an hour. This comes at a time Delhi has been under a 'Yellow alert' for heatwaves. The maximum temperature, which was expected to hit 41 degrees Celsius, is now likely to settle closer to 38 degrees Celsius following the showers.
The India Meteorological Department has issued 'orange' and 'yellow' alerts for thunderstorms, dust storms and rain in different parts of Delhi.An 'orange' alert has been sounded for southwest Delhi, with authorities warning of thunderstorms accompanied by winds reaching up to 60 kmph, along with the possibility of lightning and brief spells of rain.
A 'yellow' alert has been issued for parts of northwest Delhi, west Delhi, north Delhi, south Delhi and southeast Delhi, signalling the likelihood of thunderstorms and gusty winds, while advising residents to remain cautious.
Experts said the national capital should also brace for dust storms in the coming days, attributing the changing conditions to a cyclonic circulation prevailing over central Pakistan and adjoining regions of Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab.
India Meteorological Department (IMD) scientist Akhil Srivastava said that thunderstorm activity is expected in Punjab and Haryana over the coming days, which may lead to a drop in temperatures by 2-4 degrees Celsius. He added that an orange alert for thunderstorms has been issued for Bihar, Gangetic West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand, while heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely in northeastern India over the next week.
"In the northern region, a heatwave has been prevailing for the past 15 days. However, due to a western disturbance centred around 66 degrees East longitude, thunderstorm activity is expected in the Western Himalayas and adjoining plains. Alerts have been issued for Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand for thunderstorms and hailstorms. Punjab and Haryana may witness thunderstorms with wind speeds of up to 60 km/h, leading to a drop in maximum temperatures by 2-4 degrees Celsius over the next three days," Srivastava said.
According to the Regional Weather Forecast Centre (RWFC) in New Delhi, light to moderate rain accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds of around 30-40 kmph was very likely across Delhi and surrounding areas during the morning hours. Data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) indicated that Delhi's air quality stood at an AQI level of 260, placing it in the "poor" category.
Follow us
