Relief sweeps north as skies open up

Widespread rain and thundershowers today in northern India led to a sharp dip in the mercury, providing relief in the region from the sweltering heat.
Overnight showers in Delhi meant that the maximum plunged nine notches below normal to settle at 30.6 degrees Celsius while the minimum slid seven notches from the normal to rest at 18 degrees.
The city received 9.5-mm rain from 8:30 A.M. Yesterday till 8:30 this morning with humidity in air recorded as fluctuating between 94 and 52 per cent.
While the plains around Delhi lapped up the showers, the hills of Uttarakhand received snowfall which forced suspension of the Kedarnath yatra till May 16.

Snowfall in the higher reaches of Garhwal Himalayas and intermittent rainfall in the lower areas hit the Char Dham yatra with pilgrimage to Badrinath also halted temporarily.
"Yatra to Kedarnath has been suspended till May 16. Snowfall continues in the shrine area while lower Kedar Valley is being lashed by showers. Yatra to Badrinath has also been temporarily halted," said Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee CEO, VD Singh.

The two neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana, too, received moderate to heavy rain which caused a dip in temperatures.
Residents of the Union Territory of Chandigarh woke to a cool morning after heavy showers of 13.3-mm lashed the city overnight.

In Haryana, Hisar and Bhiwani received 22.4-mm rain followed by Ambala (17.1-mm), Karnal (11.6-mm) and Panchkula (15-mm).
In Punjab, Pathankot was lashed by showers measuring 43-mm while Amritsar got 11.3-mm rainfall as western disturbances drove the change in weather.
The desert state of Rajasthan was in for relief from the heat as a dust storm accompanied by heavy rain lashed the north-western part of the state, affecting normal life in Churu which received a maximum of 43-mm rainfall.
A high-intensity squall accompanied by thundershowers also hit Jaipur and its suburbs in the wee hours today.
Pilani recorded 42.1-mm rain followed by Ganganagar with showers measuring 23.2-mm. It also rained in Bikaner (21.2-mm), Jodhpur (2.4-mm) and Ajmer.

The rain led to the mercury dipping by one to five degrees at many places.
Light to moderate rainfall also brought down temperatures in western Uttar Pradesh though the weather remained mainly dry in the eastern parts of the state.
Baghpat, Nazibabad, Gunnaur, Rampur, Gautambudhnagar, Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnore and Saharanpur were among the areas which received rainfall.
However, in the eastern half, heat wave conditions persisted with Orai recording a high of 43 degrees.