Dust storm plunges city into darkness

NEW DELHI: In a sudden change in the weather, parts of Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) witnessed a dust storm.

The Raisina Hill complex, the seat of the government and the bungalow zone, was shrouded in dust, kicked up by gusty winds, followed by a light drizzle.

The light rain comes as big relief from the scorching Sun that had the temperatures soaring. The maximum and minimum temperatures were recorded 33 degree Celsius and 22 degree Celsius respectively. For past many days, both the maximum and minimum temperatures in the Delhi NCR region have been settling above the normal average.

Delhi-NCR is all set to record thunderstorm and dust storm for the next 24-48 hours. Rain started off after a while lowering temperatures further.

The storm dipped the visibility, leading to vehicles plying on the streets coming to a standstill momentarily, while pedestrians rushed to seek shelter.

The Centre had forecast thunderstorms and light rainfall in the capital on Thursday due to a western disturbance approaching Jammu and Kashmir and rising temperatures on Friday. It is noteworthy that the maximum temperature has been above normal by three to four degrees for the past few days. "This is mainly because the air is dry and there is clear sky. There has been no rainfall in the plains and hills leading to less moisture in the air," said Kuldeep Shrivastava, director of the Regional Weather Forecasting Centre.

24 incoming flights have been diverted out of Delhi, and there are up to one-hour delays in both arrivals and departures at the airport.