Drizzle in Delhi brings relief, signals advancing monsoon (Lead)
June 28th, 2009 - 10:02 pm ICT by IANSNew Delhi, June 28 (IANS) Delhiites heaved a sigh of relief Sunday as brief showers brought the temperature down in the national capital that has been reeling under long power cuts. The drizzle promised the onset of the monsoon in the coming days.
According to the Met department, the maximum temperature recorded Sunday was 41.8 degrees Celsius, three notches above the average, while the minimum was at 29.3 degrees Celsius.
The maximum temperature was notably down from the past few days when the mercury hovered above 43 degree Celsius - it was 43.7 degrees Saturday.
The Met department also predicted a cloudy sky Monday with a possibility of rain coupled with thunderstorms and thunder squalls.
“The maximum and minimum temperatures Monday would hover around 39 and 30 degrees Celsius respectively,” a Met department official said.
“Today 3.6 mm of rainfall was recorded in Delhi. The humidity level was at 72 percent,” the official added.
After a week of scorching heat, Sunday afternoon saw duststorms and drizzle in Delhi and other parts of north India.
“Duststorms and mild thundershowers like what Delhi experienced today are precursors to the advancing monsoon,” India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director General Ajit Tyagi told IANS.
“Northern India is also likely to witness pre-monsoon showers in the next couple of days or the start of July. The monsoon is expected to reach Delhi by the first week of July,” he said.
The monsoon Sunday further advanced into the central India, leading to rainfall in parts of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and western Chhattisgarh.
The monsoon completely covered Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh by Saturday.
The IMD has forecast a below-average monsoon this year - the country is likely to receive only 93 percent of the expected rainfall.
According to the Met officials, northwest India that includes Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh will receive 81 percent of the average rainfall, which would be the lowest in the four zones of the country.
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Tags: ajit, central india, chhattisgarh, cloudy sky, degree celsius, duststorms, himachal pradesh, humidity level, india meteorological department, india meteorological department imd, maximum temperature, minimum temperatures, monsoon showers, north india, northern india, northwest india, squalls, three notches, thundershowers, tyagi