IMD issues fresh alert: Thunderstorm may hit UP, Delhi today; top updates

Frequent extreme weather conditions, including thunderstorms, are likely to prevail in North India in the coming days, according to an advisory issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). IMD has predicted thunderstorms and gusty winds for the next three days in most parts of the country.

On Friday, thunderstorms, strong winds, and hail storms are likely to hit isolated places in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, and parts of North West India.

Further, thunderstorms accompanied with gusty winds are also expected to hit several places in South India, including Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.

Delhi and adjoining areas in Northern India have been facing repeated warnings and thunderstorms for the past two weeks.

According to a report published by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), 80 people were killed in a thunderstorm that hit five states including New Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, and Uttarakhand on May 13.

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As many as 80 people have been killed in five states due to thunderstorms and lightning strikes since yesterday, with Uttar Pradesh alone recording 51 deaths, the Home Ministry said on Monday. Fourteen people died in West Bengal, 12 in Andhra Pradesh, two in Delhi and one in Uttarakhand, a ministry spokesperson said.

Of the 136 people injured in lightning strikes and thunderstorms, 123 were from Uttar Pradesh, 11 from Delhi and two from Uttarakhand.

A total of 24 districts in Uttar Pradesh, six in West Bengal, three in Andhra Pradesh, two in Delhi and one in Uttarakhand were hit by the lightning and thunderstorms, the spokesperson said.
Dust storms and thunderstorms wreaked havoc since yesterday in Delhi and parts of Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, leaving behind a trail of destruction.
High-velocity winds uprooted trees and affected road, rail and air services last evening in several places in north India, including the national capital.
Thunderstorms also occurred at isolated places in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Assam, Meghalaya, Maharashtara, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had said yesterday.