Drizzle, very light rain likely in parts of Delhi on Monday

The mercury in Delhi was expected to hover around 34°C on Monday compared to 35.3°C, a degree above normal, on Sunday

Drizzle or very light rain was likely in parts of the Capital on Monday amid high humidity of over 50% even as Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 26.8°C, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. A similar spell of light rain is expected on Tuesday after the Independence Day celebrations at Red Fort.

Only 0.2mm of rainfall has been recorded in Delhi over the last seven days. (AFP)

After a wet start to August, only 0.2mm of rainfall has been recorded in Delhi over the last seven days. This month, Safdarjung, representative of Delhi’s weather, has recorded 71.5mm of rainfall. The long-period average for August is 233.1mm.

An IMD official said the monsoon trough centred over Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh has led to an increase in rain activity there. The trough is expected to remain around the Himalayan foothills for the next few days. There is a monsoon “break” in the rest of the country.

“Due to the location of the monsoon trough...along the foothills of Himalayas, [there has been] good rain in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Southwesterly winds from the Arabian Sea and monsoon winds are hitting the Himalayan foothills with some moisture over Delhi-NCR [National Capital Region] too,” said the IMD official.

In a special forecast for the area around Red Fort for Independence Day, IMD on Sunday said no rain was expected there. “...there will be generally cloudy skies. There is a possibility of very light rain, but only towards the evening,” the forecast said.

The mercury was expected to hover around 34°C on Monday compared to 35.3°C, a degree above normal, a day earlier.

“Humidity will continue to be over 50%, with the moisture in the air likely to bring localised drizzle to Delhi on Monday,” said the IMD official. Relative humidity oscillated between 57 and 74% on Sunday.