By IANS
New Delhi : Heavy showers lashed several places in north India Saturday bringing much-needed respite to millions of people, even as the national capital received an unusual 76 mm of rain since Friday evening.
After a few hours of showers Friday afternoon, Delhi again experienced heavy downpours early Saturday. Much to the pleasure of Delhiites meteorologists forecast that both Sunday and Monday would be very enjoyable.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the morning showers brought down the mercury substantially – the maximum temperature was 34 degrees Celsius (six degrees below normal) while the minimum was recorded at 23.5 degrees, five degrees below normal.
"We are expecting thundershowers in several parts of Delhi and adjoining states. But people should not take them to be pre-monsoon showers," an IMD official told IANS.
Several other north Indian cities experiencing unbearable heat also woke up to a cool morning Saturday. Chandigarh recorded 14.2 mm of rain while 29.6 mm of rain fell in Patiala in Punjab. Hissar recived 8.2 mm of rain, Shimla 4.3 mm, Amritsar 5.2 mm, Srinagar 3.4 mm, Dehradun 1.7 mm and Lucknow received at least one millimetre of rain.
The morning showers brought down the temperature in Chandigarh to 28 degrees Celsius, a whopping 11 degrees below normal. Amritsar, where the mercury had climbed to over 47 degrees earlier this week, plummeted to 28 degrees, a sharp decline of 12 degrees Celsius from the normal level.
Jammu experienced 33 degrees Celsius, Dehradun 29 degrees, Varanasi – where flights could not took off earlier this week due to soaring mercury – recorded an enjoyable 32 degrees. Lucknow registered 32 degrees Celsius and Hissar recorded 37 degrees Celsius.
But for those hoping that the monsoon has arrived in the sun-soaked north India, there are some bad news. Weathermen said the monsoons are not expected to hit north India before the end of this month.
"The rain is due to upper cyclonic circulation in Punjab, Haryana and central Uttar Pradesh. Sporadic rainfall is likely to continue over the weekend," he told IANS.
In the national capital, hundreds of people visited places like India Gate, Lodhi Garden and Nehru Park. Some even played cricket in the afternoon.
"As it's a Saturday, me and some my friends played cricket in a park near our house. The last fortnight was unbearable and we hope the pleasant weather continues," said Rohit Kulkarni.
However, commuters had a tough time earlier in the day as several roads and arterial streets in Delhi saw huge traffic snarls due to water logging. Several areas like Lajpat Nagar, Subhas Nagar, R.K. Puram, Laxmi Nagar, ITO, Munirka, Dhaula Kuan and Nizamuddin localities experienced severe water logging.
"It was pouring when I was on my way to work. I had a tough time finding a auto rickshaw and when I finally managed to get one, I got stuck in a traffic jam because some cars were stranded in knee-deep water," rued Anupama Easwar, an advertising professional.