Delhi's overnight rain cools city while parts of India face flood fury

Delhi recorded below-normal temperatures, while flash flood-like conditions in Kashmir and alerts in Punjab and Jammu prompted precautionary measures

After a day of incessant rain, Delhi woke up to cooler-than-usual weather on Tuesday morning as temperatures dipped below the seasonal average. The city’s primary observatory at Safdarjung logged 37.8 mm of rainfall in the 24 hours ending at 8.30 am. Lodhi Road received 35.2 mm, while Ayanagar and Palam reported 95 mm and 57.4 mm, respectively.

 

The minimum temperature settled at 21.7 degrees Celsius, nearly five degrees below normal, while the maximum is expected to be around 31 degrees Celsius. The Met department has predicted generally cloudy skies with moderate showers in the coming days, maintaining active monsoon conditions over Delhi for the next five days.

 

Delhi’s air quality index stood at 50 at 9 am, placing it in the ‘satisfactory’ category. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) defines AQI between zero and 50 as ‘good’ and 51-100 as ‘satisfactory’.

 

Meteorologists expect light to moderate rain or thundershowers across the national capital on Tuesday, with heavier spells in a few pockets. Thereafter, only light rain is likely later in the week.

 

In the last 24 hours, both day and night temperatures were 3 degrees Celsius to 5 degrees Celsius below average. Winds from the east reached speeds of 22 kmph, gusting up to 41 kmph.

Gurugram and Punjab on alert

Neighbouring Gurugram recorded more than 100 mm of rain in just four hours on Monday evening, prompting an orange alert for heavy rainfall.

 

Fresh rain on Monday deepened Punjab’s flood woes, claiming three teenage lives in Ludhiana in rain-related incidents. Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Fazilka, Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur and Ferozepur remain among the worst-hit districts, with many villages inundated. 

 

The Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi rivers, along with seasonal rivulets, continue to swell due to heavy rainfall in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir. In Punjab’s Ludhiana, the district administration ordered the temporary closure of dyeing plants along Bahadur ke Road, Tajpur Road, Moti Nagar, and nearby industrial zones after the Sutlej’s backflow affected the Bhattian sewage treatment plant. In Kapurthala, incessant rains throughout the night and during the day worsened the flood situation in the district, particularly in Sultanpur Lodhi.

J&K reels under heavy rain, flood alert

Authorities in Jammu ordered the closure of all government and private schools on Tuesday after persistent rainfall triggered landslides in hilly districts.

 

In Srinagar, heavy rain on Monday left key stretches such as Residency Road, TRC Chowk, and Dal Gate waterlogged, forcing vehicles to wade through flooded streets.

 

In Anantnag district of Kashmir, a suspected cloudburst in Pahalgam swelled the Akad stream, creating a flash flood-like scare, though officials confirmed no casualties or damage. The weather office has warned of more rain accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds in Srinagar, Ganderbal, Budgam, Anantnag and Kulgam over the next 24 hours.