Delhi’s weather took a dramatic turn on Friday, with thunderstorms, moderate to heavy rainfall lashing the city. The waterlogging that ensued threw traffic out of gear in many places. Continuous rainfall compounded the coldwave conditions gripping Delhi and its surrounding areas. The frigid weather is expected to last longer and a yellow alert has also been issued as light to moderate rain, accompanied by thunderstorms, is likely to continue on Saturday, and Sunday.
With dense fog enveloping the National Capital, Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) Airport has activated low-visibility procedures to ensure smooth operations. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast shallow fog on Saturday morning, with light to moderate spells of rain in the evening.
According to the IMD, the National Capital recorded its highest December rainfall in the last 15 years.The rain began on Friday around 2.30 am and continued throughout the day. The total rainfall for December stands at 42.8 mm, marking the highest rainfall this month in the last 15 years, based on data from 2009 to 2024 available on the weather department’s website. Meanwhile, the all-time highest December rainfall was recorded in 1884, when the city received 134.4 mm of rain.
For comparison, the city’s December rainfall in 2023 was trace, while in 2022 it was 0.0 mm, 2021 saw 9.6 mm, and 2020 recorded just 1.6 mm. In 2019, Delhi recorded 33.9 mm of rainfall in December, which now stands as the second-highest in the last 15 years.
Following the rain, the maximum temperature was recorded 14 degree Celsius, six notches below the normal while the minimum temperature stood at 11 degree Celsius, four degree above the normal. The gap between the maximum and minimum reduced dramatically, leading to cold wave conditions. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Delhi received 30.4 mm rainfall in the past 24 hours.
According to IMD, Safdarjung reported moderate rainfall of 30.1 mm (between 8.30 am to 5.30 pm), accompanied by moderate fog, with visibility at 350 metres as of 8 am. Other stations reported light to moderate rain, with Palam seeing 31.4 mm of rainfall, Lodhi Road 34.2 mm, Pusa 32.5 mm, Ayanagar 18.1 mm, Ridge 30.8 mm, Pitampura 30.5 mm, and Narela 31 mm of rainfall.
The IMD data showed that in 2023 the lowest daytime temperature drop in December was 15.9 degree Celsius. The rain caused disruptions to traffic in various parts of South, Central, and North Delhi. The highest rain was recorded at Delhi University’s North Campus. Visuals shared on social media showed that waterlogging causing traffic congestion in the area as the rain continues to lash parts of the city.
Heavy rains in the city also reduced visibility, especially on the Delhi-Gurugram route and near the airport, with vehicles driving cautiously using headlights amidst the downpour.
According to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, water logging have been reported in Dwarka, Nilothi, Kashmiri Gate, Surajmal Vihar, Dilshad Garden, East of Kailash, Mundka, Chhatarpur while Public Works Department say several low lying areas witnessed water logging for a short period.
Meanwhile, residents of Delhi and NCR reported a significant increase in the cold severity following the downpour, which disrupted morning activities, led to traffic congestion and brought a wintry gloom over the city. Weather department officials said an active western disturbance and its interaction with easterly winds were causing light to moderate rainfall and thunderstorms over northwest and central India, including the NCR areas of Delhi. The air quality index of Delhi stood at 353 in the very poor category despite moderate rainfall throughout the day. The high AQI is attributed to pollution from the transport sector.
In its bulletin, the IMD said parts of Northwest and Central India saw the mercury dropping below zero degree Celsius, and received light to moderate rain/ thunderstorms with hail storms on Friday. The IMD in its weather forecast, issued warnings of hailstorms with thunderstorms across Southeast Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh,Vidarbha, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Marathwada and Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh on Friday. Madhya Pradesh could face similar conditions for two days. A yellow alert has been issued for lightning and thunderstorms in the region.
According to a statement by the IMD, a western disturbance is likely to interact with lower-level easterly winds over the Central parts of India, resulting in significant moisture feeding from both the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, particularly in the next two days. Under the influence of these systems, scattered to fairly widespread rainfall and snowfall are expected over the western Himalayan region in the new year.
The weather department advised that strong wind/hail may damage plantation, horticulture and standing crops. There is a possibility that thunderstorms with hail may damage the standing corps. The IMD advised farmers to keep the harvested produce in safer places or cover the produce with tarpaulin sheets in the fields. “Use hail nets to protect orchards and vegetable plants in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, West Uttar Pradesh, East Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha, Madhya Maharashtra, Marathwada and Gujrat region. In Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, in case of heavy snowfall, shake the trees to remove snow immediately from the branches,” it said.
The IMD further predicted a fresh western disturbance likely to affect western Himalayan region from 1st January, 2025. According to IMD, Kargil in Jand K recorded -13.1 degrees while Leh in Ladakh logged -12.2 degrees and Himachal’s Kalpa registered -1.1 degrees. The minimum temperatures improved slightly at most places in Kashmir as a western disturbance is likely to impact the region on Friday, bringing light snowfall over a few higher reaches. Under the influence of the western disturbance, light rain is possible over the plains of Jammu and light snow over the higher reaches of the Chenab Valley and Pir Panjal range, the IMD said. Intense cold wave-like conditions are prevailing across Kashmir, as the minimum temperatures continue to settle several degrees below freezing due to dry weather. Both the minimum and maximum temperatures have been staying below normal for this time of the season.
Meanwhile, 157 roads remained blocked in the Himachal Pradesh owing to the snowfall witnessed on December 23.Tabo in the Lahaul and Spiti district was the coldest place in Himachal Pradesh, recording a night temperature of minus 10.6 degrees Celsius, while Una was the hottest during the day with a high of 23.6 degrees Celsius.
