Delhi weather: Deficit covered, moderate rain to continue

Met officials said that parts of Delhi started receiving light rains from early Tuesday morning, which is expected to continue through the day

A day after heavy rain lashed the national Capital, covering the rainfall deficit of nearly 51% that Delhi had recorded till Saturday, India Meteorological Department (IMD) said that moderate rain is likely to continue through Tuesday.

A man wades through a waterlogged stretch along Ring Road near ITO during heavy rain in New Delhi. (Raj K Raj/HT Photo)

Met officials said that parts of Delhi started receiving light rains from early Tuesday morning, which is expected to continue through the day.

The city on Monday received 69.6mm of rain in 24 hours, a spell that led to the temperature dropping to 26.5 degrees Celsius, down from 36.4°C the previous day, and eight degrees below normal for this time of year. In fact, Delhi’s daytime temperature on Monday was the lowest for the season since July 30, 2014, when the mercury dipped to 24.9°C. The minimum on Monday was 24.2°C, three degrees below normal.

The showers started early on Monday morning, and continued throughout the day.

“With Monday’s showers Delhi has covered its rainfall deficit. Usually, in July, Delhi records around 210mm of rainfall but as of Tuesday, the city has already reached 220mm. Rains are expected to continue till July 21. However, the intensity will be lower. From July 23-24, rain will pick up again,” said Kuldeep Srivastava, head of IMD’s regional weather forecasting centre.

Srivastava also said that from Tuesday temperatures are likely to rise by a few degrees.

The monsoon arrived in Delhi on July 13, after a 16-day delay, and a series of inaccurate forecasts by the Met department. After moderate showers on the first two days of its onset, the city got only “traces” of rainfall, despite predictions of light rain and thundershowers, and an “orange alert” that was issued for the weekend.