Shaun
A total of 43 people have died in Himachal Pradesh over the last two weeks after the early arrival of monsoon wreaked havoc in the state. Heavy rains and thunderstorms triggered cloudbursts, flash floods and landslides in Himachal over the past couple weeks, with dozens dead and 37 still missing due to rain-related incidents. The Met office has issued a “red” alert for very heavy to extremely heavy rains at isolated places in Kangra, Sirmaur and Mandi districts and an “orange” alert for heavy to very heavy showers at isolated places over Una, Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Chamba, Solan, Shimla and Kullu districts for the weekend.
Light rain likely in Delhi: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast a generally cloudy sky with moderate rain on Saturday and Sunday in Delhi, with the maximum temperature expected to settle around 36 degrees Celsius. On Saturday morning, the minimum temperature in Delhi was recorded at 27.5 degrees Celsius. The air quality was recorded in the “satisfactory” category at 10 am on Saturday , with an Air Quality Index (AQI) reading of 82, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed.
Early onset of monsoon in India: Monsoon hit norther India in the last week of June this year, as opposed to its expected arrival around July 8. Over the last two weeks, heavy rains have been recorded in northern states such as Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi. Isolated rains were observed in Kashmir, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and northeastern regions in the past few days, as per the weather department.
