According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the monsoon is not expected to retreat from the Delhi National Capital Region (NCR) in the near future, and scattered rain is likely to persist for the next few days.
Meteorological officials stated that northwestern India will continue to experience rainfall over the next three to four days, as the monsoon trough extends through Rajasthan, and an active weather system is prevalent over Madhya Pradesh. The standard withdrawal date for the southwest monsoon in Delhi is September 25, as per the IMD.
On Sunday, certain parts of Delhi experienced drizzle, and the IMD predicted light rain for Monday as well. The meteorological department had issued a yellow alert for Sunday, anticipating strong surface winds, overcast skies, and light rain.
Kuldeep Srivastava, a scientist at the IMD, noted, “There was scattered drizzle in some parts of Delhi on Sunday. Cloudiness will continue to prevail over the next few days, with the combination of an active weather system over Madhya Pradesh and the monsoon trough bringing rain to northwest India.” He emphasized that the ongoing active rainfall in northwest and central India indicates that the monsoon’s withdrawal has not yet begun anywhere in the country.
Typically, the monsoon withdrawal starts in Rajasthan on September 17 and reaches Delhi by September 25. Srivastava explained, “Until there is rain across the region, the withdrawal will not be declared. Once there is a break in rain activity and several districts are dry, then the withdrawal criteria can be met.”
In the 24-hour period ending at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday, Delhi received 11.9mm of rainfall. Over the next nine hours until 5:30 p.m., “trace” rainfall was recorded. In September so far, a total of 66.2mm of rainfall has been recorded, while the normal monthly rainfall average for September is 123.4mm.
In August, Delhi saw only 91.8mm of rainfall, representing a 61% deficit compared to the monthly normal of 233.1mm for August. This was the second-lowest monthly rainfall total for August in Delhi in at least 14 years. In contrast, July recorded 384.6mm of rainfall, an 83% surplus over the monthly normal.
Meanwhile, on Sunday, the maximum temperature in Delhi was 33.1 degrees Celsius (°C), one degree below normal, and the minimum temperature was 24.3°C, also one degree below normal. The Monday forecast indicates that maximum and minimum temperatures are expected to be around 34°C and 25°C, respectively.
