Delhi witnesses heavy rain, hailstorm

NEW DELHI: In a sudden change of weather, heavy rain, hail and gusty winds hit parts of Delhi on Thursday evening.
Before the heavens opened up, dust storm enveloped the city. It was soon followed by heavy rain and thunderstorm with squall or hail.

This is the second spell of dust storms to hit Delhi and nearby areas in less than a week.
A few areas reported incidents of uprooting of trees that damaged power lines and vehicles.
The IMD has predicted strong surface winds during day time in Delhi for Friday as well.
Kuldeep Srivastava, the head of the regional forecasting centre of the IMD, said it was a result of a fresh western disturbance. Winds gusting up to 60 kilometers per hour barrelled through the national capital whipping up dust storms. A few areas witnessed hailstorm, Srivastava said.
The IMD scientist said dust storms and hail storms are a common occurance in the period between April 15 and June 15 in entire northwest India.
Cumulonimbus clouds due to western disturbance and induced cyclonic circulation over Punjab and Haryana led to dust storms and hail storms in parts of Delhi, Mahesh Palawat of Skymet Weather, a private forecasting service, said.
Northwest India hasn't witnessed a heatwave so far -- the reason being frequent western disturbances this year, he said.
(With inputs from agencies)