Date: June 16th 2008

Date: - 16.6.08

Staff Reporter | New Delhi

Rains arrive 14 days too soon but nobody is complaining

Believe it or not, it's happened! Monsoon officially arrived in the Capital on Sunday, a full fortnight before its scheduled date of arrival. In the process, it broke a 108-year-old record. Available weather records in Delhi date back to 1901 and not once has monsoon hit the city before June 16. Delhi has, however, been receiving rainfall for the past few days. And if the Met department is to be believed, Monday would witness a cloudy sky with a few spells of thundershower and heavy rainfall in some areas of the Capital. Monsoon's arrival has already been declared in many parts of north and northwest India, including Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir.

"On Monday, there would be a cloudy sky with spells of thundershower. Some areas may receive heavy rainfall," said a senior Met official. He said that except for west and northwest Rajasthan, monsoon has arrived in most of the States. "We are unable to tell the exact reason behind this development. It could just be part of the gradual change in system and the effect of western disturbances," added the weatherman. On Sunday, the Met recorded a rainfall of around 30 mm and the minimum temperature dipped to 26.6 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperature was recorded at 28.8 degrees Celsius, 10 degrees below normal.

"Keeping in view the weather record of the past few weeks, the early arrival of monsoon is not surprising. The summer has been the coolest this year and there have been light rain in the past few days also. I hope that the weather stays this way," said Anshu Khanna, a resident of Vasant Vihar. Seventeen-year-old Khanna spent her day enjoying the rains at India Gate with her friends.

Some people were, however, not too enamoured with the rain as it caused heavy waterlogging in the streets and on some main roads of the Capital. Huge traffic jams were also witnessed in some areas. Some of the areas where complaints of waterlogging were reported includes Kashmere Gate and ITO. Several vehicles were stranded near the airport's domestic terminal for a long time. In Kalkaji, Shidipura and Pitampura, several trees were reported to have been uprooted due to the rain. However, no casualty was reported.