Rain and thunderstorms bring relief from heat in Delhi, IMD forecasts more showers

Rain lashed through several parts of the national capital on Tuesday afternoon, leading to significant temperature drops across the city, with the weather department forecasting thunderstorm and rain to continue through the evening hours.

Amid a red alert issued by the India Meteorological department (IMD) for most parts of the city, strong winds and dust storms swept through the city, bringing respite from the rising heat.

According to the latest data from IMD, Safdarjung, representative of the city's weather, recorded a wind speed of 52 kmph at 2.30 pm.

Other weather stations also recorded significant wind speed, the highest being at Palam, where the wind speed reached 91 kmph at 2.30 pm.

Pusa recorded a wind speed of 85 kmph at 3pm, while Chattarpur recorded a wind speed of up to 43 kmph at 3.15 pm.

"The maximum wind speed was recorded at Palam, which reached up to 49 knots or approximately 91 kmph. The wind direction was west to south-west," said an IMD official, adding that thunderstorms and light to moderate rain are expected to continue in the next few hours.

IMD data showed a significant temperature drop in several parts of the city. Palam recorded a 10-degree Celsius fall in the temperature after thunderstorm activities, while Safdarjung recorded a seven degree fall.

The maximum drop was recorded in Ayanagar, where the temperature fell by 14.9 degrees, from 40.6 degree Celsius to 25.7 degrees after the thunderstorm.

Other weather stations like Jafarpur recorded a 11.6-degree Celsius drop in temperature, Pusa recorded a 7.6 degree drop, and Najafgarh recorded an 8.2 degree drop.

Delhi had recorded a minimum temperature of 26.8 degrees Celsius on Tuesday morning.