Thunderstorm warning over North India: Delhi to escape dust storm? Updates

Several parts of North and East India, including Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal, could witness thunderstorm and squall on Tuesday, with winds gusting up to 50-70 kilometres per hour, an alert issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast on Monday. The Delhi government decided to close all evening schools on Tuesday and put search and rescue teams on a standby in the wake of the IMD warning. However, Skymet Weather on Tuesday said that the chances of a severe dust storm over Delhi and NCR had now decreased.

As a preventive measure following the thunderstorm warning, the Haryana government closed schools for two days -- Monday and Tuesday. Further, dust storms hit Chandigarh and parts of Punjab and Haryana on Monday evening with many residents preferring to stay indoors. Chandigarh met department Director Surinder Paul had said that rainfall activity was likely to pick up in the region from Monday night.

In the national capital, the Delhi Traffic Police on Monday advised commuters to plan their journey after checking weather conditions. In the wake of the warning, the Delhi Metro, too, has decided to exercise extreme caution in running trains. In fact, Delhi Metro commuters might face delays in their journey depending on wind speeds.

IMD storm alert: Rain lashes Chandigarh; Haryana schools shut; 10 updates

As predicted by the India Meteorological Department (IMD), early morning rains lashed Chandigarh and adjoining areas on Monday. The authorities in several states, especially Haryana and Punjab, are on a high alert following the storm advisory issued by IMD.

Taking note of IMD's warning of thunderstorms at isolated places in the state, the Haryana government had on Sunday announced the closure of all schools on Monday and Tuesday.

The Union home ministry, in a fresh advisory on Sunday, said 13 states would be affected by thunderstorms, along with squall and hail on Monday. The fresh warning came days after thunderstorms wreaked havoc across the country, claiming at least 124 lives and injuring more than 300.

According to government figures, the worst casualty was reported in Uttar Pradesh, where 73 people were killed and 91 others injured. In Rajasthan, 35 people were killed and 206 injured. Eight people were killed in Telangana, six in Uttarakhand and two in Punjab; nearly 100 people were injured in these these three states.