After a delayed arrival, the monsoon wreaked havoc in Uttar Pradesh over the past three days, claiming 16 lives, mostly due to electrocution, during the past 48 hours.
Due to the heavy rains, schools up to Class 12 have been closed on Friday in Meerut, Ghaziabad, Kasganj, Etah, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor, and Saharanpur.
Eight people died from lightning strikes in the Gorakhpur-Basti division. In Bulandshahr, two people died due to a wall collapse. One each died in Aligarh, Saharanpur, Bulandshahr, Meerut , Ghaziabad and Shamli.
Heavy rains also disrupted connectivity in several districts and IMD has warned of heavy rain for 29 other districts in Purvanchal and Western UP for Friday.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed officers to go to the field to provide immediate compensation to the victims.
On Thursday, several districts in the western and Terai regions experienced heavy downpours. The highest rainfall was recorded in Najibabad (Bijnor), where 306 mm of rain fell in 24 hours—the third-highest amount recorded since 1952. Continuous rain caused temperatures to drop significantly below normal in many districts, providing residents with relief from humidity and heat.
According to the Meteorological Department, 222 mm of rainfall was recorded in Etah, 204 mm in Sambhal, and 146 mm in Agra. Meanwhile, the Terai region saw 104 mm of rainfall in Maharajganj and 78.6 mm in Siddharthnagar.
The rainfall caused maximum temperatures in several districts to drop well below normal levels. In Aligarh, the temperature was 9.4°C below normal. Drops of 8.3°C and 7.6°C were recorded in Meerut and Muzaffarnagar, respectively. Temperatures in Kanpur, Etawah, and Bareilly also remained significantly below normal.
The Meteorological Department has issued an ‘Orange Alert’ for heavy rain in 17 Terai districts for Friday. Additionally, warnings for heavy rainfall have been issued for 29 other districts across the Purvanchal and Western Uttar Pradesh regions.
Atul Kumar Singh, a senior scientist at the Regional Meteorological Centre in Lucknow, stated that good monsoon rainfall is likely to continue across both the eastern and western parts of the state until July 13. “The rain system originating from the Bay of Bengal has now reached areas around Madhya Pradesh. Its impact is also being felt in Uttar Pradesh. Therefore, the monsoon has gained strength in the state. Rain will continue for the next five days,” he added.
An Orange Alert has been issued for Kushinagar, Maharajganj, Siddharthnagar, Balrampur, Shravasti, Bahraich, Lakhimpur Kheri, Sitapur, Bijnor, Amroha, Moradabad, Rampur, Bareilly, Pilibhit, Shahjahanpur, Sambhal, Budaun districts and surrounding areas for extremely heavy rainfall.
A Yellow Alert for heavy rainfall has been issued for Azamgarh, Mau, Ballia, Deoria, Gorakhpur, Sant Kabir Nagar, Basti, Gonda, Hardoi, Farrukhabad, Kannauj, Kanpur Dehat, Kanpur Nagar, Unnao, Lucknow, Barabanki, Raebareli, Amethi, Sultanpur, Ayodhya, Ambedkar Nagar, Saharanpur, Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, Hapur, Bulandshahr, Aligarh, Hathras, Kasganj, Etah, Auraiya districts and surrounding areas.
Meanwhile, the impact of the intensifying monsoon across UP was now clearly visible in the state capital Lucknow as well.
The weather took a sudden turn in Lucknow on Thursday afternoon as dense black clouds gathered accompanied by strong winds, and shortly thereafter, torrential rain began, accompanied by thunder and lightning. Rainfall in several parts of the city made the weather pleasant, providing residents with relief from the heat and humidity.
The city recorded 27.2 mm of rainfall on Thursday. The rain also led to a drop in daytime temperatures; the maximum temperature fell by 0.6°C to 33°C, while the minimum temperature dropped by 0.2°C to 27.2°C.
The senior scientist at the Regional Meteorological Centre stated that a heavy rain warning has been issued for the state capital for Friday. Additionally, intermittent light to moderate rainfall and isolated spells of drizzle are likely to continue until July 13.