New Delhi, Monday July 2, Rainy season takes a lot out of our body. Dehydration, cramps and feeling rustic and lethargic are common in such environment. In all you can say that hot, humid and sultry conditions makes you sick.

This is the reason rainy or monsoon season is also called the season of sickness. But most of us have to trudge out for work, braving the vagaries of weather like heat, humidity, rainfall, etc. It is of utmost importance that we do not fall sick and the key to this is keeping hydrated.

Here are a few tips for staying fit in hot and sultry weather:

• Wear light colored clothes and materials such as Linen and Cotton. Also, try to wear loose fitting clothes and avoid ties.
• Avoid heavy physical work or exercise.
• Take frequent breaks in shaded areas and avoid crowded places if you have to venture out.
• Drink lots of water to keep hydrated. Drink even if you are not thirsty.
• Avoid caffeine and alcohol.
• Prefer drinking fluids that are rich in minerals so that minerals lost by the body during sweating are replenished.
• Eat frozen treats such as ice creams, sandwiches, salads, fresh fruits and vegetables.

Use these suggestions and be sure to spend a hydrated and energetic monsoon.

New Delhi, Monday, July 2 The already delayed Monsoon may still be a week away from the northwestern parts of the country but people in Delhi have started to experience humid and sultry conditions.

High humidity and unrelenting temperatures are making Delhiites sweat more and feeling a bit thirstier too. This sudden rise in humidity levels in the air is attributed to strengthening of southeasterly winds containing moisture reaching Delhi and weakening of dry and hot northwesterly winds.

Temperatures may take a dip in the capital in the coming days due to the weakening of dry and hot northwesterly winds but humidity will soar, making life uneasy and uncomfortable under the prevalence of moisture laden winds.

Southeasterly winds would bring down the temperatures, currently in the forties while their mixing with dry and hot northwesterly winds would create instability in the atmosphere. Such instability may lead to chances of thunderstorm in and around Delhi.

Delhi is anticipated to receive pre-monsoon showers by July 5 while the rainfall may intensify by July 8, prompting monsoon to be announced here. The showers may bring in some respite after a humid and sultry week.

New Delhi, Friday, June 29 Monsoon continues to disappoint as prospect of a revival is unlikely during the next two to three days anywhere in the country. The monsoon has failed to gain any momentum despite some weather formations in the week gone by that had promise.

The country has experienced deficiency in rainfall that stands at 25 percent less than the historical averages till date.

Coastal Maharashtra and Goa are poised for a decrease in rain activity during the next forty eight hours as the recent surge has weakened while monsoon showers lashed these parts with good rains during the last twenty four hours.

Gangetic West Bengal may receive rainfall and bring relief as temperatures would drop a bit under the aegis of a cyclonic circulation.

This cyclonic circulation spells more good news as it is expected to develop into a low pressure area over head Bay of Bengal as it reduces in height. The cyclonic circulation is currently in the upper air.

The low pressure would interact with a trough extending along the Indo-Gangetic plains and funnel moisture and hopefully the progress of monsoon into east India. Delhi may also experience first showers of this monsoon by June 5, if the low pressure sustains the momentum as depicted by numeric weather prediction guidance.

Latest cloud images show a build-up cloud mass over north Bay of Bengal that would trigger rainfall activities here.

A trough extends from sub-Himalayan West Bengal to north Bay of Bengal and would sustain rainfall over northeast, sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim. But rainfall would decrease in intensity over northeast due to a gradual weakening of the trough.

Troughs are places where winds from opposing directions meet (or winds turn) and atmospheric pressure is low while the turbulence caused by such interaction (or turning) leads to rain, thundershowers and storms. Southwesterly winds are turning into northwesterly along this trough.

The weather system developing over Bay of Bengal would suck away a lot of energy and moisture from this trough.

Mixing of northwesterly winds from the north and southwesterly winds from Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal along north and coastal Andhra Pradesh would usher in light rain spells over the region and adjoining parts of interior Karnataka, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Orissa.

Stray moisture may also cause isolated rains and thunderstorms at a few places over rest of India except Rajasthan, Gujarat and west Madhya Pradesh.

Northwest India including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and adjoining West Bengal would continue to reel under intense hot weather conditions for the next twenty four hours as dry and hot northwesterly winds from the Thar are dominating these areas.

Parts of Central India would also share the fate of these parts as the region is being fed by similar winds. The west coast may also witness marginal rise in temperatures.

New Delhi, Thursday, June 28 Northwest India will continue to reel under intense heat wave conditions during the next forty eight hours while increase in moisture due to prevalence southwesterly winds will further add to the misery in north India.

The Western Disturbance over north Pakistan and adjoining Jammu & Kashmir may cause scattered rainfall in Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal. A cyclonic circulation over Punjab would interact with the Western Disturbance and usher light thundery weather in the northwest plains. Isolated showers are likely over Punjab, Haryana and northern parts of west Uttar Pradesh.

Western Disturbances are westerly (traveling west to east) weather systems that originate due to evaporation over the Mediterranean or the Caspian Seas.

A trough extends from sub-Himalayan West Bengal to north Bay of Bengal and would sustain rainfall over northeast, sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim. Moisture laden winds from the Bay of Bengal would follow the trough into these parts and cause rainfall.

Troughs are places where winds from opposing directions meet (or winds turn) and atmospheric pressure is low while the turbulence caused by such interaction (or turning) leads to rain, thundershowers and storms. Southwesterly winds are turning into northwesterly along this trough.

Another trough that runs off shore from Konkan to Kerala will support rainfall along the west coast. But intensity of rainfall may reduce after a couple of days in this area due to the weakening of the surge over west coast.

Scattered rain or thundershowers will continue in south peninsula and central India due to stray moisture from Arabian Sea or Bay of Bengal.

New Delhi, Friday, June 29 The bright summer sun keeps staring at us during the hot months. The brightness and the flares of the sun are so strong that we are unable to fully open our eyes at times. Walking, driving or traveling becomes tougher as our eyes feel the strong reflection of sun rays and get strained. The eyes might also get harmed due to exposure to sun rays.

So having a good pair of shades can save our eyes not only from rays but from dust as well. But choosing and buying a good pair of shades that suits our eyes and protects us from harm is not an easy task.

Polarized shades should be preferred during summers. Polarized shades are meant to reduce the brightness and flares of the sun and relax our eyes.

But selecting the right polarized shades is important. You take the salesperson’s word as a guarantee against solar radiation and dust. So you must conduct a test of polarized shades to see whether it would serve you good.

Put on the shades and look at any LCD screen, be it a mobile, digital display watches, monitors and laptops. While looking at the LCD, tilt your head sideways towards both right and left. You can be certain that it is really a polarized pair if the brightness of the display changes noticeably or if weird colors are seen.

The test is easier with a mobile. Just keep your mobile in front of your eyes and rotate it in the same vertical plane. You will see the similar distortion in view as discussed earlier.

This test works because LCD works on the principle of selectively blocking the light on the basis of its angle of polarization.

Now, no matter how hot the day is, you can venture outside, drive, travel or walk wearing the right kind of shades to save your eyes from heat and dust.

New Delhi, Wednesday, June 27 Monsoon is around the corner. While monsoon is always greeted with cheers, this is a period when people fall sick the most. Onset of this rain spell comes with many diseases such as malaria, jaundice, typhoid, cholera, cold and cough as rain water clogs our cities and towns and there is a spread of insects and viruses that serve as carriers to these diseases. But a little care can help you avoid many ailments that grip you during the monsoon. Here are a few tips that can save you from these seasonal diseases.

Diseases such a malaria and dengue are caused by mosquitoes that find breeding grounds in puddles of rain water. So a good idea would be not to allow water to stand anywhere be it your street, terrace or bodies that store water like open tanks or coolers. Also, put a mosquito net around the bed and use mosquito repellant creams.

Digestion is weakened due to dehydration in summer so maintaining light diets with plenty of vegetables and fruits would be suitable. Ginger and green grams are also beneficial in daily diet.

Most diseases striking during monsoon like jaundice, typhoid or cholera are water borne. So, the water you drink should be boiled at least once and filtered properly to clean away any germs killed. In the same zest, every meal should be eaten warm. Cold food usually attracts germs and other infestations during moist monsoon months and heating it would kill the germs.

A few more do's and don'ts to be followed:

Do's

• Always keep the surrounding dry and clean
• Keep your body warm as viruses attack immediately when body temperature goes down
• Keep your feet dry and dry out whenever they get wet
• Wash vegetables with clean water and steam them well to kill germs
• Drink plenty of water and keep your body well hydrated

Don’ts

• Physical over exertion or heavy exercising
• Over exposure to sun
• Allow water to get accumulated around
• Enter air conditioned room with wet hair and damp cloths
• Eat uncooked food and salads
• Allow kids to play in stagnant polluted water filled puddles

Hope you would carry out these set of instructions have a healthy and fun filled monsoon.

New Delhi, Tuesday, June 26 If weather forecasts are to be believed, Vidarbha is heading towards improved monsoon rains this year. The drought hit areas of Vidarbha can expect rains but in short heavy spells. Observed rainfall data between June and June 25 published by India Meteorological Department (IMD) corroborates this fact as Vidarbha is better off than most regions with below normal rainfall. Notably, only northeast India and Chhattisgarh are better placed during this monsoon till now. The country as a whole is deficient by 60 percent till now.

But caution is required to properly utilize the most of this precious water. Rain water usually gets drained due to lack of facilities to store rain water. Many water demanding crops wilt as necessary irrigation could not be provided. Harvesting rain water becomes the most imperative tool to ensure irrigation in an area deprived of rivers. According to an estimate, the region has some 40,000 farm ponds and 100 new check dams for this purpose but that is not enough to feed crops.

Even when strong monsoon conditions prevails elsewhere in the country, Vidarbha tends to receive rainfall in short heavy spells after which most of the rainwater gets drained as there is no significant arrangements to store and preserve the rainwater. The wait for rainfall extends up to a week to ten days for such spells after every shower. This is the reason Vidarbha usually gets caught in a vicious circle of drought conditions every year. The rains may be favourable this year as has been witnessed till now but retaining it for periods of dry weather is essential to reverse this unfortunate trend.