With day temperatures starting to hit the 30 degrees Celsius mark, many Delhiites had started putting away their warm clothes in storage to mark the end of winter.
But a windy Sunday morning forced them to pull out something warm to wear once again as rain lashed the city, bringing temperatures down eight degrees below normal for this time of the year.
The rain and wind provided the city with much-needed relief. People were seen enjoying the day, walking in the rain and even giving a brisk business to roadside kiosks serving hot food.
Many, however, were unhappy as outdoor events had to be cancelled. A group of fans who had bought tickets and were eagerly waiting to watch Grammy-nominated England-based band alt-J perform live in Gurgaon were left heartbroken as the concert was cancelled.
Research student Raghav said he had planned to go for a picnic at a food flea market but ended up at a restaurant that serves Parsi food near the venue instead. He spent his rainy Sunday digging into some piping hot dhansak and salli boti instead.
M. Duraisamy of the Meteorological Department explained that the rain was caused due to a western disturbance that originated over the region near the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea, and then settled over Pakistan and Afghanistan.
He added that moisture-laden winds blowing from the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal then interacted with this western disturbance and an induced system lying on the south of the western disturbance to bring rain in Delhi and snowfall in parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
“It is an interaction between three different factors that has brought light to moderate rain and a fall in temperature as moisture is lifted to form clouds,” he explained, adding that the rain will continue till Monday. Tuesday is expected to be a cloudy day with light rain, thunder showers in some areas and mist in the morning
According to the weather department, the maximum temperature on Monday will be 19.0 degrees Celsius, eight degrees below normal, and the minimum 15.2 degrees, three degrees above normal.
Mr. Duraisamy said there will be snowfall in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand over the next two days.
However, those who have plans to celebrate Holi need not worry as the weather in the city will remain dry over the weekend.
The rainfall recorded until 5.30 p.m. on Sunday was 17.2 mm, while relative humidity oscillated between 60 per cent and 100 per cent.
