Incessant rains lash Delhi

New Delhi: Incessant rains lashed the national capital on Wednesday, submerging low-lying areas in knee-deep water and affecting traffic on key roads during morning rush hours.

The India Meteorological Department issued an alert at 10:05 am for heavy rains in the national capital.

Thunderstorms and moderate to heavy spell of rains are very likely to continue over the entire Delhi and adjoining areas over the next two hours, it said.

The downpour may lead to "major traffic disruption" and there is an "increased chance" of road accidents, it warned.

Kuldeep Srivastava, the head of the regional forecasting centre of the IMD, said Delhi recorded light to moderate rains between 6 am and 8:30 am, thereafter the intensity increased.

Heavy rains are very likely as the day progresses, he said.

The Safdarjung Observatory, which provides representative figures for the city, recorded 7.4 mm rains till 8:30 am. The Lodhi Road, Ridge and Ayanagar weather stations gauged 9.2, 8.2 and 2.8 mm



precipitation.

Rainfall recorded below 15 mm is considered light, between 15 and 64.5 mm is moderate and above 64.5 mm is heavy.

Vehicles moved bumper to bumper during the morning rush hours, as the downpour led to heavy waterlogging at key road stretches.

Pictures and videos of vehicles and people wading through waist-deep water were widely shared on social media.

Srivastava said the axis of monsoon will remain close to the national capital till Thursday. Therefore, more rains are likely.

Southwesterly winds from the Arabian Sea and southeasterly winds from the Bay of Bengal are also feeding moisture to the region, he said.

The downpour is expected to reduce the rain deficiency in the capital.

The Safdarjung Observatory has recorded 139.2 mm rainfall against the normal of 157.1 mm in August so far, a deficiency of 11 per cent.

Overall, it has recorded 457.8 mm rainfall, six per cent more than the normal of 433.2 mm since June 1 when the monsoon season starts.