Delhi sees gusty winds, hailstorm and heavy rain as people feel relief from heat; flights impacted

New Delhi [India], May 21 (ANI): Delhi witnessed gusty winds, heavy rain and hailstorm on Wednesday, with the fall in temperature providing relief to people from the scorching heat of the past few days. The winds and rain also lead to the uprooting of trees in some areas.
Adjoining areas of Delhi also witnessed rain and gusty winds. Ghaziabad experienced gusty winds, heavy rainfall and lightning. Heavy rain accompanied by thunderstorm lashed several parts of Karnal in Haryana.
Many domestic and international flights to Delhi airport from various airports have been halted or diverted due to weather conditions in Delhi, airport sources said.
Indigo said that its flight 6E 2142 operating from Delhi to Srinagar encountered sudden hailstorm en route.
"The flight and cabin crew followed established protocol and the aircraft landed safely in Srinagar. The airport team attended to the customers after arrival of aircraft prioritizing their wellbeing and comfort. The aircraft will be released post necessary inspection and maintenance," the airline said in a statement.
Some people came out of their residences to venture in rain and experience the change in weather.
The rain brought down the temperature by 14 degrees Celsius. From 37 degrees Celsius at 7.30 pm, it dropped to 23 degrees Celsius at 8.30 pm at Palam, IMD officials said.
Delhi Fire Service received more than 25 calls after the weather change, most of them related to fallen trees. No casualties have been reported so far, according to DFS.
An India Meteorological Department (IMD) official said earlier in the day tha a cloud mass will enter North Delhi and move south-southeastwards, triggering a dust storm and strong winds.
The official said winds will blow at speeds of 50-60 kmph, gusting up to 70 kmph, along with light rainfall during the next one hour.
"Cloudmass entering into North Delhi is likely to move south-southeastwards across Delhi, causing a dust storm and strong winds 50-60 kmph gusting to 70 kmph with light rainfall during the next one hour," the official said.
According to Ministry of Earth Sciences, the southwest monsoon seasonal (June to September) rainfall over the country as a whole during 2025 is most likely to be above normal (>104% of the Long Period Average (LPA)).
Quantitatively, the seasonal rainfall over the country as a whole is likely to be 105% of LPA with a model error of +- 5%. The LPA of the season rainfall over the country as a whole for the period 1971-2020 is 87 cm. (ANI)