IMD forecasts rainfall, thunderstorms in Delhi today; mercury may plummet

Met officials said while the rain on Monday and Tuesday is likely to cause a dip in mercury, this respite will be short-lived

Delhi and its neighbouring satellite towns are expected to receive light to moderate rainfall, coupled with thunder and dust storms, on Monday and Tuesday, India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast on Sunday.

The last time the city received rain and thunderstorm was on March 12, when the city woke up to light to moderate showers, with hailstorm in parts of NCR. (Raj K Raj/HT PHOTO)

Kuldeep Srivastava, head of IMD’s regional weather forecasting centre, said that under the influence of a western disturbance, strong winds and rains have already begun in parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh.

A western disturbance is an extratropical storm originating in the Mediterranean region that brings sudden winter rain to the northwestern parts of the Indian subcontinent.

“Its impact will lead to rain and dust storm in Delhi and NCR, also leading to hailstorm in some parts of Haryana. There is also a possibility of thunderstorm in some parts of Delhi,” Srivastava said.

IMD officials say rain on Monday and Tuesday will bring down the temperature but this respite will be short-lived. (HT Graphics)

This is the fifth western disturbance to pass over the region this month. The last time the city received rain and thunderstorm was on March 12, when the city woke up to light to moderate showers, with hailstorm in parts of NCR.

Strong winds, touching the speed of around 40kmph, are also expected to blow on Monday. This is also likely to help improve the air quality of the city. On Sunday, the overall air quality index of the city was 244 in the ‘poor’ category, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) recordings.

On Sunday, Delhi’s Safdarjung weather station, which is considered the official marker for the entire city, recorded a maximum temperature of 35.2 degrees Celsius — four degrees above the season’s normal. The minimum temperature of the day was 16.2 degrees Celsius.

Met officials said that while the rain on Monday and Tuesday is likely to cause a dip in temperature, this respite will be short-lived.

“Till March 24, Wednesday, the maximum temperatures are likely to hover around 31-32 degrees Celsius. However, after that there is a forecast of a steep rise in maximum temperatures,” a senior IMD official said.

IMD forecast said that after Wednesday, there is a possibility of the mercury levels touching 37-38 degrees Celsius. This season, the highest maximum temperature to be recorded so far was 35.3 degrees Celsius, recorded on March 18. The mean maximum temperature for March is 29.6 degrees Celsius.

According to IMD data, Delhi had in 1945 recorded the highest temperature ever, with the mercury touching 40.5 degrees Celsius. IMD officials said that while there are no signs of this record being broken this time, the mercury levels will come close to the 40 degree mark.