Worries over early summer recede, with northern areas likely to see wet weather until late March

NEW DELHI: The rapid rise in temperatures in the first half of March, which led to an earlier and longer summer in northern India, appears to have stalled for at least the next two weeks. The Meteorological Department said that while the ongoing weather system is bringing rain to northern India, two more rains are expected to affect the region this month, ensuring that temperatures remain normal or below normal.The wet spell, which began around March 14 with a western disturbance, marked a sudden shift in weather for the region after a particularly dry winter and high temperatures since mid-February. Not only does it bring rain, it also brings much-needed snow to the alpine regions ahead of summer. Apart from this, the forest fire season in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh is expected to be delayed by a few weeks. Delhi is expected to experience a rare situation where the second half of March is cooler than the first half.The ongoing western disturbance will affect northwest India until around March 21. Another active western disturbance is likely to affect the region from around March 23, and a third disturbance is likely to affect the region from around March 27. We expect temperatures to be in the normal to below normal range. The heat wave has subsided. ” India Meteorological Department.

If the IMD forecast of two active WDs affecting northern India holds true, the number of these wet weather systems will reach four in the second half of March. The current western weather has caused widespread rain and snow, which is expected to continue to affect the area over the next two to three days.Cold weather has returned in the hilly areas, which are most affected by the weather disturbance.The maximum temperature in Srinagar dropped from 19.4 degrees Celsius on March 14 to an estimated 11 degrees Celsius on Wednesday as fresh snowfall in Gulmarg and Sonamarg brought an unexpected bonanza to tourists. Last month, Srinagar experienced its warmest February on record.Higher areas of Himachal Pradesh witnessed fresh snowfall, while low and mid hills received light to moderate rain. Heavy rain and snow warnings have been issued for Thursday. The minimum temperature recorded at Tabo in Lahaul Spiti was -2.8 degrees Celsius.In Delhi, daytime temperatures peaked at 36.8 degrees Celsius on March 11, 8.4 degrees above normal. By March 15, the maximum temperature had dropped to 30.1 degrees Celsius. It is expected to drop to around 27 degrees Celsius by Friday.