Heavy rain alert as monsoon remains active

The monsoon remained active across several parts of India on Sunday, September 6, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) warning of heavy rainfall at isolated places in multiple states. Delhi and neighbouring areas remained under weather alerts as fresh showers hit the national capital.

The IMD forecast heavy rain in parts of Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. The eastern and northeastern regions were also expected to receive heavy showers, including Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Bihar, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura. Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim were also likely to experience heavy rainfall.

Several areas could witness thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds along with the rain. The IMD’s nowcast issued a red alert for parts of Delhi until 1.30 pm on Sunday, covering Central Delhi, North Delhi, Northwest Delhi, Northeast Delhi and Shahdara.

Delhi received fresh rainfall on Sunday morning and was expected to remain generally cloudy, with moderate rain likely through the day. A yellow alert was also issued for Delhi and nearby areas, including Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad and Noida.

The latest forecast comes after heavy rain over the previous two days caused waterlogging and traffic disruption across Delhi-NCR. Gurugram witnessed severe traffic congestion, particularly on roads connecting the city with Delhi. A traffic jam of nearly 10 kilometres on the expressway left thousands of commuters stranded for hours.

The weather department forecast fairly widespread rainfall over Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi. West Uttar Pradesh was also likely to receive widespread rain, while East Uttar Pradesh could see similar conditions from September 6 to 8, with isolated heavy rainfall. East Rajasthan was also expected to receive isolated heavy showers.

Apart from rainfall, strong winds and thunderstorms remained a concern. Gusty winds of 30-40 kmph were forecast at isolated places in Bihar, East Madhya Pradesh, East Rajasthan, Gangetic West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Karnataka, Sub-Himalayan West Bengal, Sikkim and West Rajasthan.

Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal could experience stronger thunderstorms, with lightning and gusty winds reaching 40-50 kmph at isolated locations.

The wet weather is expected to continue on Monday, September 7, though the areas likely to receive heavy rainfall are expected to narrow. The IMD has forecast isolated heavy rain in several northeastern states, Bihar, parts of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim.

Authorities have advised people in affected areas to remain alert during thunderstorms and heavy rainfall, particularly in areas prone to waterlogging and flooding.