City witnesses highest single-day rainfall for Jan in 22 years; waterlogging reported

New Delhi: Delhi recorded its highest rainfall in a day for January in 22 years on Saturday, yielding the city's best air quality in over two months even as the minimum temperature settled at 15 degrees Celsius, eight notches above normal.

The record rainfall led to waterlogging at several low-lying areas, including New Friends Colony, Pul Prahladpur, Ring Road and Mandawali among others.

According to the India Meteorological Department, the Safdarjung Observatory, considered the official marker for the city, recorded 41 mm rainfall in a 24-hour period ending at 8.30 am on Saturday, the highest for the month of January in 22 years. The highest single-day rainfall for January recorded in the city was 46 mm in 1999.

Delhi's Palam observatory received a record 47.6 mm rainfall in the span of 24 hours ending at 8.30 am on Saturday, its highest in a day for the month of January after 1995, when it had recorded 52.2 mm downpour, IMD data showed.

The weather station in Ayanagar recorded 49 mm rainfall from 8.30 am on Friday to 8.30 am on Saturday, Ridge 48 mm, Lodhi Road 42.2 mm and Najafgarh 42.5 mm.

From 8.30 am on Saturday till 5.30 pm, the Safdarjung observatory recorded 6.2 mm rainfall, Palam 14 mm, Ayanagar 6.9 mm, the Ridge 7.2 mm, Lodhi Road 6.7 and Najafgarh 16 mm, the IMD data showed. The weather office predicted cloudy skies with the possibility of light rain or drizzle on Sunday. "There will be partly cloudy sky with possibility of drizzle and moderate fog in the morning," it predicted.

According to Central Pollution Control Board's 24-hour AQI bulletin at 4 pm on Saturday, Delhi's AQI was 91, in the 'satisfactory' category.

The record rain led to inundation in several low-lying areas of the city in the morning. The areas which witnessed waterlogging include the Pul Prahladpur underpass, New Friends Colony, IP Marg Ring Road, Mandawli, New Ashok Nagar, Dabri, Mahavir Nagar, Bindapur, Yamuna Vihar, Wazirabad, Pushta Road, Kirari, and Nangloi among others.