Delhi rain: NCR breathes cleanest air this year, AQI crosses 52

Delhi rain: Constant rains over the past few days have really posed a lot of challenges to Delhi and its adjoining districts within the National Capital Region (NCR).

Not counting September revelations such as the yearly and monthly average rainfall in September, nation capital received over 1000 mm of precipitation this month. This is the second highest rainfall total in the last ten years and the first one since 2021. In Delhi-NCR, rainfall was observable, but the earlier day’s orange alert over possible rainfall was revised to yellow alert by IMD of the weather on Friday, stating more rain expected on Saturday.

Let’s now turn to the latest update concerning the rainfall in Delhi-NCR

Due to sporadic though regular periods of rain observed in Delhi during this month from Wednesday night, particularly the waterlogging and the resultant traffic have been abominable, among other challenges present.

For instance, a 54mm rainfall in Palam Ward forced the residents of Delhi to change their usual schedules. 30.9 mm of rain was recorded between 14:30 and 17:30 hours on the 13th September at the main Safdarjung weather observatory within a three hour timeframe. Gurugram had recorded 46mm of rain before 5:30pm, while Wazirabad station had seen around 56mm of rain.

During a specific monsoon season, the capital city receives on average 650 mm of rain. This year, precipitation has measurably gone beyond 1,000 mm, and the Regional Meteorological Centre issued a forecast of more rainfall during the night. Also, it is said that, in September, the city recorded a precipitation of 55% more than normal; September improved all records achieved in the preceding months. Delhi-NCR registered 125.8mm of rainfall last month alone.

Besides making the lives of Delhi residents a bit more challenging, the incessant showers also brought about improvements in weather. The pollution levels in the capital also hit an all-time low due to the constant rainfall. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) reported the average Air Quality Index (AQI) at approximately 52, which happened to be the worst AQI level at that time. However, on September 10 of the last year, a reading of AQI 45 was noted. On Friday, the high temperature registered was 27.6 degrees Celsius, six degrees lower than the normal value. But according to the IMD, the temperature on Saturday will reach about 32 degrees Celsius for the first time in quite some while but will most probably drop to 21 or 22 degrees during the night.

Friday’s downpours resulted in the shifting of flights bound for Delhi’s Indra Gandhi International airport, blocked several key intersections within Gurugram, including Hero Honda Chowk, Rajiv Chowk, and IFFCO Chowk, and suspended subway access for pedestrians and NMT.