First whiff of monsoon in parts of North India

New Delhi, May 16 (UNI) People in many parts of North India are relishing the first whiff of approaching monsoon with light rains pulling down the maximum temperature over the last 24 hours.

The maximum temperature fell 7 to 8 degrees celsius below normal in Eastern Uttar Pradesh where almost all stations reported rain, the Met office said.

An upper air cyclonic circulation over North Rajasthan and adjoining areas brought rain to parts of Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi also, a spokesman for the Met department said.

The maximum temperature was in the 31-33 degrees celsius range in Eastern UP. ''It has become pleasant there. Lucknow (31 degrees) and Allahabad (33 degree) are relatively cool right now,'' he said.

Pilani in Rajasthan's Shekhawati belt (13.2 mm), state capital Jaipur (0.5 mm), Hisar (3.3), Bhiwani (both Haryana), Ghaziabad, Noida (UP) and East Delhi also recorded some rain in this period.

The rainfall occurred because ''south easterlies are penetrating North Rajasthan and Punjab'', the weatherman said. The weather phenomenon, persisting for the last one week, was expected to continue for the next 48 hours, he said.

Temperatures -- currently 1-2 degree below normal in Delhi and adjoining areas and 7-8 degree below normal in East UP -- will rise once the weather system changes, he added.

Experts say such localised weather phenomenon is normal in the pre-monsoon months.

The Met department has forecast that the south-west monsoon will hit the Kerala coast on May 30 this year, two days ahead of its normal onset date of June 1 in the state.

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