Surprise showers lower mercury in Delhi

People in the national capital region got some respite from heat with sharp showers on Wednesday evening that brought the mercury down by over eight degrees Celsius.

According to Met Office, light rain and thundershowers are expected during the night in some parts of the National Capital Region (NCR).

Around 5.30 p.m., the temperature was around 33.0 degrees Celsius. But the rain led to a pleasant dip in the temperature which was recorded at 24.8 degree Celsius, a meteorological department official said.

The first half of the day was sunny and warm with the maximum temperature close to 34.9 degrees Celsius, he added.

"It was a good sign with the start of nine-day 'Navratra' festival. The goddess has brought the rain to give respite to the people from the high temperature and they could comfortably go out to visit temples as well as enjoy the food going around the markets," said a housewife, Kanchan Sharma.

With the dip in temperature, she said the swine flue and dengue fever would also be hopefully under control as mosquito breeding falls in cold weather.

However, office-goers returning home were caught unawares by the sudden squall and the sharp showers that followed.

"The rain was completely unexpected at this time of the year. I had to do some shopping, but had to hurry back to home," said Vaishali Kapoor, an IT professional who works in Noida.

The rain also splashed the plans of media professional Ankur Tyagi, who was to take his ten-year-old daughter to the garden for a game of badminton in the evening.

"Today, I had a weekly off... I got ready to go out to play with my daughter but was surprised with the sudden rain. It was very tough time for me to convince my daughter who was adamant for going out into rain for playing," he said.

Sundar Singh, however, welcomed the rain, saying the "weather now would be pleasant" until it becomes chilly during the winter.

On Tuesday, the maximum temperature was recorded at 35 degrees Celsius, a couple of degrees higher than the season's average, while the minimum temperature settled at 25.6 degrees Celsius, six notches above the season's average.