Wet weather, cold winds keep Gurgaon indoors on holiday

Breaking the warm spell over the last few days when the minimum temperature rose two degrees above normal, the city, on Thursday, woke up to grey skies and thunderstorms. The wet weather brought some respite to residents who preferred to stay indoors on the 68th Republic Day.

Breaking the warm spell over the last few days when the minimum temperature rose two degrees above normal, the city, on Thursday, woke up to grey skies and thunderstorms. The wet weather brought some respite to residents who preferred to stay indoors on the 68th Republic Day.

Vehicles plying in the rain on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway on Thursday. (Parveen Kumar/HT Photo)

The Met department said the maximum and minimum temperatures over the last one week rose three and two degrees above normal. However, the drizzle and storm on the day restored both to normal levels.

The Met officials attributed the wet weather to heavy snowfall in the Himalayas. The minimum temperature onThursday was 16°C.

Though a thunderstorm punctuated by light rain and occasional flashes of lightning were experienced at about midnight, it didn’t last too long. However, the effect of wet weather lingered on as the skies remained overcast through the day and a veil of mist shrouded the city affecting visibility. The visibility dropped to less than 50 metres as the mist descended on the city.

The residents preferred to stay indoors as the wind speed touched 13.2 km per hour. “Heavy snowfall in the Himalayas coupled with the Western Disturbance has effected this sudden change in weather,” a Met official said.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the rainfall experienced on the day was seasonal and put out a forecast saying there could be light showers on Friday and Saturday and the temperatures could drop lower. There is also a possibility of rain or thunderstorm at isolated areas of the city.

Though it rained through the day, the movement of traffic on the streets remained normal as the residents camped indoors to avoid the chill outside. “I couldn’t go out for a walk this morning as it was raining and the wind was up. I usually step out at about 7am for a walk, but preferred to stay indoors today,” Sangeeta Ghosh, a resident of Sector 30, said.

However, the Met department said that soon, the cold spell over the city, will snap and the maximum temperature will start rising by the first week of February.