Thunderstorms give delhiites respite from heat

NEW DELHI: A day after temperatures rose to a roasting 43 degree Celsius, Delhi got a respite from heat on Friday with thunderstorms and rain lashing the city.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) attributed this sudden change in weather to the prevailing western disturbances in areas across the north Indian subcontinent.

“The western disturbance as a cyclonic circulation extending up to 3.1 km above mean sea level over north Pakistan and adjoining Afghanistan persists. It would move east-northeastwards over the western Himalayan region during the next 72 hours,” according to the daily weather forecast by IMD.

Temperature is expected to stay high for another two days, though storm and rain could occur in areas across north India.

“Thunderstorm would occur at isolated places over Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi, west Uttar Pradesh, south Assam and Tripura,” said IMD’s forecast.

The forecast however added the heat-wave conditions would prevail at some places over Rajasthan and at isolated pockets of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, north Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha and Telangana.

Maximum temperatures could rise by 3-4°C over east India and no significant change is expected in northwest India during the next 48 hours, according to the forecast for the next two days.