Light Rain In Delhi, Minimum Temperature Settles At 26.4 Degrees

Light rain drenched parts of the city on Wednesday afternoon, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.  More precipitation is likely over the next few days.  Weather forecasters said the influence of a well-marked low pressure area over northwest Madhya Pradesh and its neighbourhood was likely to bring rain over Delhi and surrounding areas in the next few days.

Moderate precipitation is likely on Thursday, the Met office said. The Safdarjung Observatory, Delhi's primary weather station, recorded a minimum temperature of 26.4 degrees Celsius. It said the maximum temperature was likely to settle at 34 degrees Celsius.  

The maximum temperature is likely to hover around 30 degrees Celsius over the next few days, the weather office said. After a large rain deficit in August, monsoon activity has remained subdued in Delhi and neighbouring areas so far in September.  

Delhi has recorded above-normal maximum temperatures on most September days owing to the deficit in rainfall. The Safdarjung Observatory has logged just 18.2 mm rainfall against a normal of 84.3mm in September so far -- a deficit of 78 per cent.  

It had recorded just 41.6 mm rainfall in August, the lowest in at least 14 years, due to the absence of any favourable weather system in northwest India. Overall, the Safdarjung Observatory has recorded 370.6 mm rainfall against a normal of 601.2 mm since June 1, when the monsoon season usually starts, clocking a deficit of 38 per cent. 

Weather experts had attributed the lack of rainfall in August to the development of three low-pressure areas over northwest Bay of Bengal that pulled the monsoon trough over central India and prevented it from moving to the north for a long period. The weather bureau has predicted below-normal rainfall in some parts of northwest India in September.

(With PTI inputs)