Gurugram: Dust storm, rain drag down mercury, bring relief to residents

A dust storm, followed by a spell of rainfall on Friday evening brought relief to city residents from the stifling heat over the last few days.

While residents woke up to overcast skies, there was marked shift in the weather pattern around 5pm, as strong winds swept away the plastic sheets on the overhead covers of the recently constructed Rajiv Chowk and Hero Honda Chowk underpasses.

Some of the plastic sheets fell on vehicles causing minor damage.

“Such was the intensity of the winds that the some of the overhead plastic sheets of the Rajiv Chowk and Hero Honda Chowk underpasses flew off. Officials are at the spot and the sheds will be repaired by tonight,” Saurabh Singhal, traffic transportation expert and head of the underpasses built by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway, said.

Around 5.45 pm, parts of the city reported spells of rainfall which dragged down the mercury.

The city recorded a maximum temperature of 38°C on Friday, while the minimum temperature was 22°C. On Thursday, a city recorded maximum and minimum temperatures of 37°C and 24°C respectively.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), there could be more such showers in store till April 11.

An IMD official said, “There could be more such rainfall till April 11 after which the skies will clear. The rainfall was the result of a depression over Punjab and Haryana and a western disturbance in Jammu and Kashmir.”

For residents who booked indoor seats at eateries on Friday evening, the sudden change in weather called for a change of plan.

Read I Met predicts rain, dip in temperature in Gurgaon today

“I had booked indoor seats at an eatery in CyberHub well in advance. However, after the rainfall, I called the manager of the eatery and had my seat reservation changed to the outdoor seating area as I wanted to relish the cool breeze,” Mihir Kohli, a resident of DLF 5, said.

Some residents, who had been experiencing breathing problems due to the rise in the level of suspended particulate matter in the air over the last few days, heaved a sigh of relief as the rain brought down the pollution levels and gave them a reason to venture outdoors.

“I had been experiencing a breathing problem because of the rise in pollution levels. However, the rainfall in the evening resulted in a significant improvement in the air quality. I could breathe better and even took a stroll in the park,” Tina Khanna, a resident of Essel Towers, said.