Bringing respite from the muggy weather, the heavy showers on Tuesday brought down the mercury but caused traffic snarls and waterlogging in parts of the city. Budget airline SpiceJet announced that departures and arrivals of flights have been affected due to heavy rains in the national capital.
However, Delhiites again felt the sweltering heat on late Tuesday afternoon after the mercury rose to 32.5, three notches lower than the normal for this season, with humidity reaching to 66 per cent at 5:30 in the evening. The minimum temperature settled at 26.2 degrees Celsius, a notch below normal, and relative humidity at 8:30 am was 93 per cent, the weather department said.
According to India Meteorological Department data, Delhi recorded 2 mm of rains in 24 hours till 8:30 am on Tuesday. Five districts in Delhi have reported deficient rainfall this monsoon so far due to poor distribution of rains, stated IMD data. On average, Delhi has recorded a rainfall deficiency of 23 per cent, gauging 90.4 mm of rains as against a normal of 116.9 mm since June 1, when the monsoon season starts.
Following the rainfall on Tuesday morning, the commuters witnessed heavy traffic jams in various parts of the national capital due to waterlogging. Traffic snarls and waterlogging were reported in several parts, including Burari, Jasola, Pitampura, Rithala, Bijwasan and Shivaji Vihar.
According to Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), the water logging was reported at four areas while 19 complaints regarding the falling of trees was also reported across the national capital. "Due to rain, waterlogging was reported at Pritampura, Rithala, Bijwasan and Shivaji Vihar," said a senior MCD official.
"Rajouri Garden,west Punjabi bagh, Ashok Nagar, Metro Pillar no.-181 Rajouri Garden, Dwarka, Jangpura, Nehru Nagar, Anand Vihar, Vishwas Nagar, C.R.Park, Safdarjung Enclave, Karol Bagh, Pahadganj,Sabzi Mandi, Azadpur, Jahangir Puri and Kingsway Camp were the areas from where complaints regarding the falling of trees was received," the senior MCD official added.
In a tweet, the Delhi Traffic Police said, "Traffic Alert, As per IMD report: Thunderstorm with light to moderate intensity rain would occur over and adjoining areas of entire Delhi. Commuters are advised to plan their journey accordingly."
Office-goers reported traffic snarls at important junctures like Akshardham, GTB Nagar, ITO, Burari, Sardar Patel Marg among others.
A commuter, Shivam Sadana said, "Normally it takes me 35 minutes to reach my office from Indirapuram. However, owing to the rain, it took me more than an hour this morning. I got stuck in traffic just as I crossed the Delhi-Ghaziabad border. From there, the traffic moved at snail's pace until Akshardham."
The minimum temperature in Delhi on Monday was recorded at 27.1 degrees Celsius, while the maximum temperature was 36.9 degrees Celsius.
The MeT office has forecast a generally cloudy sky with light to moderate rain on Tuesday. The maximum temperature is expected to settle around 36 degrees Celsius.