Delhi witnesses intermittent rainfall; expect light rainfall or thundershowers over the next six days, says IMD

In Delhi, the Safdarjung weather station, which the IMD considers to be a marker for the city, recorded 20.8 mm of rainfall from 5.30 am to 5.30 pm Thursday. The observatory at Aya Nagar in South Delhi recorded a higher amount — of 44.6 mm – till 5.30 pm.

In a bulletin, the IMD said that active monsoon conditions are likely to continue over central and adjoining northwest India during the next two days.

45% excess rainfall in capital

Monsoon hit Delhi on June 25 this year, a little ahead of the normal onset date of June 27. June is set to end with the city having recorded excess rainfall for the month, with the monsoon and, before that, remnants of Cyclone Biparjoy and western disturbances bringing rain.

With the rainfall on Thursday morning, the city has recorded 96.7 mm of rain in June. This is an excess of 45% over the normal of 66.7 mm till June 29 at the Safdarjung observatory. This is also the highest amount of rainfall that the city has received June 2018 onwards, IMD data shows. Safdarjung recorded 24.5 mm of rain in June 2022, 34.8 mm in June 2021, 85 mm in June 2020, 11.2 mm in June 2019, and 40.1 mm in June 2018.

The last time the city recorded a higher amount of rainfall in June was in 2017 –191.9 mm. The normal or long period average for the entire month of June is 74.1 mm.

Most rainy days in over a decade

The city has also recorded the highest number of rainy days in June this year from at least 2011, IMD data shows. This year, Safdarjung saw 16 rainy days, including days when the rainfall recorded was less than 1 mm. In contrast, last year, there were six rainy days in June, eight such days in June 2021, and 13 such days in June 2020.

For the period from 1991 to 2020, the average number of rainy days in June is 4.8.

With cloudy skies and rainfall, the maximum and minimum temperatures remained below normal Thursday. While the maximum temperature was 34.2 degrees Celsius, three degrees below the normal, the minimum temperature was 23.8 degrees Celsius, four degrees below the normal. The maximum temperature is likely to be around 36 or 37 degrees over the next five days, going by the IMD forecast.