Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi
New Delhi, Jul 2: Heavy rain accompanied by thunderstorms and strong winds lashed several parts of Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) on Thursday, prompting the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to upgrade its weather warning from a yellow alert to a red alert.
The IMD warned that light to moderate rainfall, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning and winds of 60-80 kmph, gusting up to 100 kmph, is likely across the entire Delhi-NCR over the next two hours. It has also forecast a generally cloudy sky with moderate rainfall over the national capital throughout the day.
Rain was reported from several areas of Delhi, Noida and Ghaziabad, while dark clouds and gusty winds brought relief from the hot and humid weather that had gripped the region over the past few days. The showers also led to a noticeable drop in temperatures.
Despite the adverse weather, operations at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport remained normal. However, airport authorities advised passengers to check with their respective airlines for the latest flight updates.
On Wednesday, Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 28.6 degrees Celsius as intermittent showers and gusty winds provided temporary respite from the prevailing heat and humidity.
Meanwhile, the IMD has forecast that the southwest monsoon is likely to reach Delhi by July 4.
According to the weather department, the monsoon reached Delhi on June 25 in 2020 and 2023, June 28 in 2024, June 29 in 2025, June 30 in 2022, and as late as July 13 in 2021.
The IMD said conditions remain favourable for the further advance of the southwest monsoon into parts of the north Arabian Sea, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Punjab and Rajasthan over the next two days.
On Wednesday, the monsoon advanced into more parts of the north Arabian Sea and Gujarat, covered the entire regions of Daman and Diu, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh, and extended further into Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab.