When will it rain in Delhi? Heatwave, heavy rainfall, and humidity forecast travellers in India need to know

This week, if your travels take you through India, expect extreme weather in just about all directions. With north and central India still battling the hazards of an ongoing heatwave, the south and northeast have a different set of extreme weather challenges coming their way, including heavy rainfall, thunderstorm, humidity, winds, and choppy seas.

As per the latest bulletin released by the India Meteorological Department (IMD), issued on May 23, India is currently experiencing one of the widest contrasts in weather phenomena during pre-monsoon season.Travellers must be prepared, as this will make weather alerts as important as hotel reservations during their holidays. From heatwave weather in Delhi and Rajasthan to rainfall in Meghalaya and Kerala, the next few days will play a crucial role in any road trips, rail journeys, wildlife tourism, mountain treks, or even beach getaways.

So, when will Delhi finally get rain?

The answer to the question that north Indians are asking right now is quite disappointing: Delhi is unlikely to experience any rainfall for most of the coming week.As per the rainfall forecast by the India Meteorological Department, there will be no rainfall over Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi up until May 27, after which some isolated rainfall activity might take place on May 28 and 29.Rather than experiencing rain, the capital will experience heatwave conditions from May 23 till 28, severe heatwave conditions specifically from May 24 to 27.

For those visiting Delhi for sightseeing purposes, this weather pattern could make their experience highly exhausting during the daytime. Places like Humayun’s Tomb, Lotus Temple, India Gate and Qutub Minar could become challenging to visit in the afternoon because of excessive heat emanating from roads and stones.

North Indian heatwave getting serious

Delhi isn’t the only one. Large parts of Northwest and Central India are likely to remain under severe heat wave conditions for the next five to six days.As per the IMD, severe heat wave conditions are very likely to prevail in East Uttar Pradesh and East Madhya Pradesh for the rest of the week. Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, and Delhi are likely to see heat wave conditions till May 28, while severe heat waves are very likely till May 24-27, Rajasthan is also expected to face dangerous heatwaves, especially its Western districts.Vidarbha in Maharashtra continues to remain one of the hottest parts in the country.

The highest max temperature in India has been recorded at Brahmapuri in Vidarbha, where temperature rose to 47.2°C.For travellers, this heat could adversely impact their tigers safari in central India, road trip in Rajasthan, heritage tour and city tour, train journey, desert tour, and outdoor adventure activities. Travelling in the afternoon would become very exhausting.

Humidity is adding to the discomfort

The places that do not come under the heatwave alert zones are likely to face humid weather.

Hot and humid weather is likely in Gangetic West Bengal, as well as some parts of Tamil Nadu.The combined impact of hot weather and humidity will make people feel much hotter than what is recorded in their surroundings. Travellers travelling to places like Kolkata or other coastal areas in Tamil Nadu will face extremely exhausting and humid weather despite the absence of extremely hot conditions.Warm conditions are also expected in Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Vidarbha regions at night.

This implies that the temperature level will remain high even at night and there will be no respite from hot conditions.

Northeast India ready to face days of heavy rains

While most of north India faces acute shortage of rain, Northeast India is bracing itself to receive too much rain. As per forecasts by the IMD, heavy to very heavy rainfall will occur in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya, while very heavy rains will continue in Assam and Meghalaya until May 25.Shillong, Cherrapunji, and mountain roads in Arunachal Pradesh may experience poor visibility, flooding, traffic disruptions, landslides and mudslides in certain areasTravellers planning monsoon road trips in the Northeast should keep buffer time in their itineraries and stay updated on local road advisories.

Kerala and southern India enter heavy rainfall phase

Southern India also seems to have entered an extended period of intense rains. Kerala, Lakshadweep, Tamil Nadu, interior Karnataka, Rayalaseema, and coastal Andhra Pradesh may see widespread rainfall along with thunderstorms and wind gusts in the coming few days.

Kerala and Lakshadweep are likely to witness particularly active rainfall conditions till at least May 28.The above conditions could impact tourism in areas such as houseboat trips in Alleppey, beach tourism in Varkala, ferry trips in Lakshadweep, hiking in the Western Ghats, and waterfall tourism in Karnataka and Kerala.On May 23, thundersqualls are predicted in interior Karnataka, coastal Andhra Pradesh, and Rayalaseema with gusts up to 50-70 kmph.

Rough seas may affect coastal travel

The weather is also expected to be bad in various places in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal. According to IMD, there will be squally weather with winds blowing at a speed of 40 to 60 kilometers per hour in and around the coast of Kerala, Karnataka, Lakshadweep and Comorin areas. There will be strong winds in parts of the south Bay of Bengal. Travellers involved in marine activities over the next few days need to watch out for any warning.

Travellers may be affected by thunderstorms

Various states located towards the east and south will be experiencing thunderstorms with strong winds and lightning. Thundersqualls with winds blowing at a speed of 70 kilometers per hour may occur in Jharkhand and Bihar between May 24 and 25. Isolated hailstorms may occur in the state of Himachal Pradesh.

The monsoon is slowly approaching

In spite of the extreme heat prevailing in the north, the southwest monsoon is moving gradually. According to the IMD, favourable conditions have been created for further advance of southwest monsoon over more parts of southeast Arabian Sea, Comorin area, Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea during the next 2-3 days.