The national Capital region on Thursday witnessed a light to moderate spell of rain for the second consecutive day with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicting rainfall activity for the next two days.
As many as 17 flights were diverted from the Delhi airport due to bad weather in the national Capital while many areas including Kashmeri Gate, AIIMS, Dhaula Kuan, Apsra Border, Khajuri Chowk, ITO, witnessed heavy traffic jam on Thursday evening.
The airport official said that out of the 17 flights diverted from the Delhi airport, 8 flights each were diverted to Lucknow and Jaipur while one was diverted to Dehradun.These flights were diverted to Lucknow, Jaipur and Dehradun, an airport official said.
“Delhi/ NCR is likely to have rain and thundershowers during late evening and night. With a break sometime tomorrow forenoon/afternoon, the wet spell will resume tomorrow as well. The remnant showers, albeit light, may even continue on Saturday morning and cease thereafter,” the SkyMet weather said.
According to IMD, Delhi has recorded a total of 34mm rainfall in the month of March - exceeding its monthly normal of 19.1mm with strong winds and thunder showers.
“It is likely to raise this margin further,” the weather agency said. A similar rain spell coupled with a thunderstorm hit the Delhi-NCR region on Wednesday.
The minimum temperature in the national capital settled at 18.8 degree Celsius on Thursday, while the maximum temperature was around 32 degree Celsius, as per the IMD.
A Western Disturbance, labelled as an extra-tropical storm originating in the Mediterranean, is an area of low pressure that brings sudden showers, snow and fog.
They bring moderate to heavy rain in low-lying areas. Nearly 5 to 10 per cent of India's annual rainfall is thought to be a result of western disturbances.
While the rain has been delaying the heat wave by bringing down the temperature, it has also damaged the standing crop in the northern and central parts of India, including Punjab, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh.
