The national capital is off to a wet start receiving heavy showers in most parts of Delhi and NCR. The official representative observatory Safdarjung recorded 25.1 mm rainfall in the last 24 hours till 0830 hours this morning. Another 8 mm was recorded in the next 3 hours till 1130 hours. One spell and 33.1mm rainfall against the monthly normal of 19.3mm is surely going to be an outlier for Delhi. Last year i.e. 2020, a total of 37.8 mm of rain was measured in January was incidentally the highest in the last 12 years. This year, Delhi is going to surpass that total shortly (within 24 hours) and therefore will break yet another record of being the rainiest in a couple of decades.
This wet spell is very much on the expected lines and was forecast much in advance. A strong western disturbance has lashed the entire northern region with fairly widespread rain and thundershower accompanied with hailstorm at few places. This has resulted in the rise in the minimum temperature to 9.9 degrees Celsius this morning against 1.1 degrees Celsius day before yesterday thereby abating cold wave condition but now slipping into cold day condition.
More rain and thundershower with possible hailstorm is likely over Delhi till 06th January. Intense activity is expected over Delhi on 4th and 5th January and residual effect on 06th January. Following this spell, the cold wave will return in Delhi, again dropping the minimum temperature to less than 5 degrees Celsius.