After an intense dust storm, rain lashed parts of Delhi on Tuesday, offering brief relief from the elevated daytime temperatures.
Safdarjung, Delhi’s base weather observatory, recorded the highest rainfall of 8.4 mm between 8:30 am and 5:30 pm, according to the evening bulletin issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
Light rainfall was also recorded at other stations across Delhi, including Lodhi Road, Ridge, and Pusa, which received 4.6 mm, 3.5 mm, and 3.0 mm of rainfall, respectively.
Strong winds and intense thunderstorms that swept across the city in the afternoon reduced visibility and brought down temperatures in several areas.
At 2:30 pm, visibility at Palam Airport dropped sharply from 6,000 metres at 2:00 pm to just 800 metres within half an hour, according to IMD officials.
The thunderstorm activity triggered a sharp fall in temperatures across several parts of the city.
Ayanagar recorded the steepest decline, with the temperature dropping by 14.9 degrees Celsius (°C), from a pre-thunderstorm high of 40.6°C to 25.7°C. It was followed by Jafarpur in southwest Delhi, where the temperature fell by 11.6°C, from 38.3°C before the thunderstorm to 26.7°C afterwards, according to IMD data.
Other stations also reported significant declines, including Janakpuri (11°C), Palam (10°C), Naraina (9.6°C), and Najafgarh (8.2°C).
At Palam, squally winds reaching 91 kmph from the west-southwest direction lasted for about two minutes, resulting in a sharp fall in temperature from 39.8°C before the thunderstorm to 28.8°C after the storm activity, IMD officials said.
Despite the brief respite from thunderstorms and rain, temperatures rose again, with the maximum temperature for the day settling at 40.1°C.
The IMD has forecast a hotter week, with no major changes expected in the city’s minimum and maximum temperatures over the next five days.