Thunderstorm, rain give Delhi relief from heat, disrupt flights, cause waterlogging
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New Delhi (PTI): Thunderstorm accompanied by heavy rain battered Delhi overnight, disrupting flight operations, uprooting trees and electricity poles, and causing waterlogging in several areas while bringing relief from stifling heat.
The sudden change in weather led to a sharp drop in mercury with the city recording a minimum temperature of 19.8 degrees Celsius, 6.9 notches below the normal.
The India Meteorological Department said the city's primary weather station at Safdarjung recorded winds gusting up to 82 kmph and 81.2 mm of rain in six hours -- between 11.30 pm and 5.30 am.
Palam gauged 68.1 mm of rain, Pusa 71 mm, Mayur Vihar 48 mm, Narela 30 mm, and Delhi University 29 mm.
Sources said as many as 49 flights, including 17 international ones, were diverted at the country's largest IGI airport here due to the inclement weather. Water logging was also reported at Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport.
Flight tracking website Flightradar24.com showed that around 180 flights have been delayed and some cancelled at the airport.
In the city, several stretches, including Moti Bagh, Minto Road, ITO, Dhaula Kuan, Delhi Cantonment, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg and Chanakyapuri, were partially submerged.
A car and a bus were seen almost completely submerged at an inundated underpass in the Delhi Cantonment area. Videos circulating on social media showed similar scenes, purportedly from the Minto Road area.
The weather department had issued a red alert on Saturday night warning about an approaching thunderstorm cell from the west and northwest. It had forecast severe thunderstorms or dust-raising winds accompanied by frequent lightning and gusty winds under its influence.
Several parts of the national capital reported strong winds, with Palam recording gusts of 72 kmph, Pragati Maidan at 76 kmph, Jafarpur at 61 kmph, and IGNOU at 50 kmph.
After the heavy rain that accompanied the thunderstorm, Delhi's temperature dropped sharply between 1.15 am and 2.30 am.
At Safdarjung, the temperature fell from 31 degrees Celsius to 21 degrees Celsius, while at Palam it dropped from 29 degrees Celsius to 22 degrees Celsius.
Pusa saw a drop from 31.8 degrees Celsius to 20.5 degrees Celsius, Pragati Maidan from 31.4 degrees Celsius to 21.3 degrees Celsius, and Lodhi Road from 31 degrees Celsius to 22.3 degrees Celsius.
For Sunday, the weather department has forecast a thunderstorm with rain, with the maximum temperature expected to settle around 38 degrees Celsius.
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Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao criticizes Centre for steep hike in commercial LPG price
Bengaluru: Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao has slammed the BJP government in the Centre for the hike in the price of commercial LPG, saying the sudden rise of the fuel rate by Rs 993 a cylinder has hit the common man hard.
Critically commenting that this was expected of the Centre after elections to five states, Rao posted in Kannada on his ‘X’ account on Saturday that the people have been shown only the trailer and, the real struggle is yet to begin.
“Since there is no election in any state, there will certainly be major hikes in the rates of petrol, diesel and domestic LPG in barely a few days,” he has predicted.
The minister has further tweeted, “The rate of commercial LPG has gone up to Rs 3,152 per cylinder, which will hit the hotel industry greatly. Ironically, the direct impact of the hike will be on customers of hotel.”
He pointed out that, earlier, the price used to be hiked by approximately Rs 50 and Rs 100 a cylinder. “This time, the rate has been shot up by Rs 993. What do we call this except daylight robbery? Can this be the ‘Acche Din’ that the BJP has been promising?” Rao asked mockingly.
He also questioned the cause for BJP members’ silence for the rate hike, reminding that the party always ‘threw a tantrum’ when a non-BJP government does so even at a minor level. “Does this reflect their fear of ‘Vishwaguru’ Modi? Is it the party’s sheer disregard for the welfare of the people?” he has questioned.
ಊಹಿಸಿದಂತೆಯೇ ಪಂಚರಾಜ್ಯ ಚುನಾವಣೆ ಬಳಿಕ ಕೇಂದ್ರ ಸರ್ಕಾರ ಬೆಲೆಯೇರಿಕೆಯ ಛಾಟಿ ಬೀಸಲು ಪ್ರಾರಂಭಿಸಿದೆ. ಕಮರ್ಷಿಯಲ್ ಸಿಲಿಂಡರ್ ಬೆಲೆಯನ್ನು ಏಕಾಏಕಿ ₹993 ಏರಿಸುವ ಮೂಲಕ ಮರ್ಮಘಾತ ನೀಡಿದೆ. ಚುನಾವಣೆ ಮುಗಿದ ಕೂಡಲೇ ಬೆಲೆಯೇರಿಕೆ ನಿರೀಕ್ಷಿತವಾಗಿತ್ತು. ಆದರೆ ಒಂದೇ ಭಾರಿ ₹993 ಹೆಚ್ಚಳ ಮಾಡಿರುವುದು ಅನಿರೀಕ್ಷಿತದ ಜೊತೆಗೆ ಆಘಾತ ತಂದಿದೆ.…
— Dinesh Gundu Rao/ದಿನೇಶ್ ಗುಂಡೂರಾವ್ (@dineshgrao) May 2, 2026
