(The New Indian Express)
Delhi is poised to welcome the monsoon earlier than usual this year, with rain-bearing clouds expected to sweep into the city on Tuesday. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert for the day, warning of rain, thunderstorms, and lightning, a sign of the shifting monsoon timeline and increasingly erratic weather patterns.
If the monsoon sets in on June 24 as forecast, it will be the earliest arrival since 2013, when it reached Delhi on June 16. The typical onset date is around June 30, but recent years have shown considerable variation—June 28 in 2024, June 25 in 2023, and as late as July 13 in 2021.
The IMD noted that conditions are currently favourable for the monsoon to advance into more parts of Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, and Delhi. In the capital, the next few days are expected to remain generally cloudy, with light to moderate rainfall likely, accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning.
Delhi has already seen a wetter-than-usual June so far. With 89 mm of rainfall recorded this month, the city has more than doubled its long-term average of 43.3 mm for June. This contrasts with last year, when June ended with an exceptional 243.4 mm of rain, well above the 74.1 mm monthly normal.
The IMD’s yellow alert, part of its four-tier warning system, signifies that residents should remain aware of potentially disruptive weather, especially in low-lying areas and on roads prone to waterlogging.
So far this June, there have been three days when rainfall exceeded 2.4 mm, contributing to the current above-normal precipitation. The early arrival of the monsoon is expected to bring more relief from the ongoing heat, while also posing the usual challenges of waterlogging and traffic disruption.
The city witnessed a relatively mild and overcast day on Monday, with light rain recorded in some areas ahead of the anticipated monsoon arrival. As per the IMD, the city saw a maximum temperature of 36.2 degrees celsius at Safdarjung, which was 2.4 degrees below normal for this time of year. The minimum temperature stood at 28.2 degrees celsius, close to the seasonal average.
While the city remained mostly dry in the early hours, light rainfall was recorded between 8:30 am and 5:30 pm, with Safdarjung logging 4.1 mm and Lodhi Road 4.3 mm. Humidity levels hovered between 60% and 89%, contributing to a muggy atmosphere despitethe below-normal temperatures.
Easterly winds blew at speeds up to 15 kmph, and skies remained generally cloudy throughout the day. Though thunderstorm activity was anticipated, the day remained largely calm.
