In a sigh of relief, Delhi received light rainfall on Friday afternoon after witnessing weeks of scorching heatwaves. The rainfall was much-needed and was highly awaited by the people of Delhi. Meanwhile, rain also lashed parts of Gurugram.
Heatwave batters national capital
In the last few weeks, the maximum temperature in the national capital soared to never-witnessed levels crossing 50 degrees Celsius at one instance. Due to the extended heatwave, the peak power demand also broke records rising nearly 100 MW over the highest-ever demand registered before 2024. In line with the sweltering heatwave, as many as 21 people have lost their lives in Delhi. On June 20, there were 14 confirmed deaths due to heatstroke in India while nine people died due to suspected heatstroke
IMD predicted thunderstorms, rainfall
Earlier, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) had predicted that thunderstorms with light to moderate intensity rain and gusty winds with speeds of 30-50 Km/h would occur over and adjoining areas of most places of Delhi and NCR including, Gannaur, Sonipat, Kharkhoda, Sohana, Palwal (Haryana) Sakoti Tanda, Baraut, Daurala, Bagpat, Meerut, Khekra, Modinagar, Pilakhua, Hapur, Gulaoti, Sikandrabad, Bulandshahar, Khurja (U.P.) during next 2 hours.
Meantime, the maximum and minimum temperature for June 21 were predicted to be 41 degrees Celsius and 29 degrees Celsius respectively.
The heatwave condition in Delhi was further exacerbated by the shortage of water. Delhi is currently facing the scarcity of water which led to political strife between Aam Aadmi Party and the opposition BJP and Congress. In such a situation, the rainfall is respite for Delhities. The rainfall was also important in a sense that IMD had already predicted below average rainfall in June. India has received 20 per cent less rainfall since the start of the monsoon period on June 1, with the rain-bearing system making no significant progress between June 12 and 18, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). However, conditions are now favourable for further advancement of the monsoon into parts of Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, coastal Andhra Pradesh, northwest Bay of Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand over the next three to four days, the weather department said. India received 64.5 mm of rainfall between June 1 and 18 which is 20 per cent less than the long-period average (LPA) of 80.6 mm, it said.
