Monsoon, Five Days Late, Arrives In Delhi

The Southwest Monsoon arrived in Delhi on Thursday, five days after its normal onset date of June 27, bringing widespread rain to several parts of the city.The India Meteorological Department, or IMD, said it is for the first time since 2021 that monsoon has arrived in July.In 2021, monsoon had set in on July 13. In the last five years, the southwest monsoon had reached Delhi on June 29 in 2025, June 28 in 2024, June 25 in 2023 and June 30 in 2022.Intermittent showers accompanied by light winds were reported from several areas of the city during the morning, providing respite to residents after days of warm and humid weather.#WATCH | Delhi: Rain lashes parts of the national capital, bringing respite from heat#Heavyrain #Delhi pic.twitter.com/G94s39JLLR - NDTV (@ndtv) July 2, 2026VIDEO | Delhi: Several parts of the national capital received light to moderate rainfall on Thursday morning, bringing relief from the humid conditions. Visuals from near Mayur Vihar.#DelhiRains #Monsoon #WeatherUpdate(Full video available on PTI Videos -... pic.twitter.com/pYciTxQTxg - Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 2, 2026The city's air quality was recorded in the 'satisfactory' category, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) being at 100 at 9 am, according to the data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).According to the CPCB, an AQI between zero and 50 is considered 'good', 51 to 100 'satisfactory', 101 to 200 'moderate', 201 to 300 'poor', 301 to 400 'very poor', and 401 to 500 'severe'.The weather office has forecast thunderstorms accompanied by rain over many parts of Delhi during the day, with generally cloudy skies expected to prevail.IMD officials said the monsoon is expected to advance further into several parts of North India in the coming days. A yellow alert has been issued for parts of western and central India due to expected heavy rainfall.The weather department said conditions remain favourable for the further advance of the southwest monsoon into some more parts of the North Arabian Sea and Gujarat, the remaining parts of Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab, and additional parts of Rajasthan over the next two to three days.