Cloudburst in Delhi? Relentless rains leave city drenched, disrupted

New Delhi: Monsoon showers lashed parts of Delhi on Wednesday, bringing much-needed relief from the humidity, but also triggering waterlogging and traffic snarls.

Waterlogging and traffic disruptions were reported from several parts of the city, including Nehru Place, Aurobindo Marg, Kailash Colony, Lajpat Nagar, Siri Fort Road, the Chirag Delhi flyover, Outer Ring Road, G K Marg, Rail Bhawan, Akshardham, Ashram, ITO, Pul Prahladpur, M B Road, M G Road, Old Rohtak Road, Shadipur, Madhuban Chowk and National Highway 8.

Between 5:30 pm and 8:30 pm, the Najafgarh weather station recorded 60 mm of rainfall, followed by Aya Nagar (50.5 mm), Pragati Maidan (37 mm), North Campus (22 mm), Pusa (30 mm), Palam (14.4 mm), IGNOU (11.5 mm), Janakpuri (4 mm), Naraina (6.5 mm) and Lodhi Road (1.5 mm).

Meanwhile, the primary weather station at Safdarjung recorded just 1.4 mm of rainfall.

According to the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), only one complaint of waterlogging was received at the Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC).

The complaint, related to waterlogging at 4A Harish Chandra Mathur Lane, was marked as "work in progress".

Whereas, around 29 complaints of waterlogging were received at the PWD control room in the evening.

These complaints were from areas like New Friends Colony, the Jhilmil underpass, Loni Gol Chakkar, Durgapuri Chowk, the Wazirabad road and Yamuna Vihar and adjoining areas.

Meanwhile, in its latest nowcast, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a "red" alert for Delhi, which, according to the colour code, indicates the need to stay vigilant and take action.

Earlier in the day, there was no alert for the city but by afternoon, an "orange" alert was issued. In the latest weather update, the alert was further escalated to "red".

The IMD said moderate to intense rainfall, accompanied by a moderate thunderstorm and lightning, is very likely to occur across Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR).

The department also said an eastward-moving cloud cluster is likely to cause moderate rainfall at most places, with heavy rainfall at isolated locations, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning and strong winds with speeds of 30 to 40 kilometres per hour, gusting up to 50 kmph, on Wednesday evening. Light to moderate rainfall has been reported from the eastern parts of the city.

Under the influence of the cloud cluster, thunderstorms and moderate to intense rain have been forecast. The department has urged people to avoid open spaces, refrain from taking shelter under trees, stay away from weak walls and unstable structures, and avoid going near water bodies.

The maximum temperature was recorded at 35.6 degrees Celsius, a notch below the average, the IMD said.

The minimum temperature was 26.4 degrees Celsius, 1.5 notches below normal.

The relative humidity at 8:30 am and 5:30 pm was 81 per cent and 58 per cent respectively.

The air quality was recorded in the "satisfactory" category as the Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 81 at 4 pm.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), an AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor", and 401 and 500 "severe".