Delhi-NCR rain floods roads, societies, govt buildings; IMD warns of more till August 3

Delhi rain

The national capital on Friday witnessed moderate to heavy rainfall, with showers continuing from Wednesday night. The downpour led to waterlogging in several areas and disrupted daily life, particularly at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, where flight schedules were affected.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), light showers are likely to continue through the weekend. "We can expect rains to continue in the city. Light rain will likely continue in most places with overcast skies," said an IMD official. The forecast suggests that Delhi will keep experiencing wet weather till at least August 3, a report by NDTV said.

Safdarjung, Delhi’s main weather station, recorded 39.1 mm of rainfall between Wednesday and 8.30 am Thursday. Additional rainfall during the day added 16.6 mm more by 5.30 pm. Other weather stations reported significant rainfall too, Ridge logged 34.4 mm, Lodhi Road 9.3 mm, Rajghat 9.8 mm, and Pusa 9 mm. The heaviest rainfall was recorded in southwest Delhi, Palam received 79 mm, Najafgarh 61 mm, and Ayanagar 51.1 mm.

The downpour impacted air travel, with at least four flights being diverted from Delhi’s IGI Airport due to poor visibility and adverse weather conditions. Many other flights were delayed, causing inconvenience to passengers.

Flood woes in Ghaziabad

In Ghaziabad, the heavy overnight rainfall flooded multiple areas and disrupted daily life. Residential society basements and even the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) office were inundated. The basement of the GDA building, which stores important documents, was submerged under several feet of water. Despite the deployment of suction pumps, hundreds of paper files suffered damage before the water could be cleared, The Times of India reported.

Employees at the Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation (GMC) also faced a dangerous situation when residual dampness and poor earthing caused electric current to pass through the walls of their office building. The staff were forced to remain outside the building, waiting in the parking lot and garden for safety. “We had to stay outside in the garden and parking area as the building became too dangerous to enter,” TOI quoted Roshan, a GMC employee, as saying.

Delhi records a rain-soaked July

With consistent showers throughout the month, July 2025 ended with 259.3 mm of total rainfall, 24 per cent higher than the monthly average of 209.7 mm. This follows an already wet May, which saw 186.4 mm of rain, making it the wettest May on record for Delhi, against an average of just 30.7 mm. June also exceeded expectations with 107.1 mm of rainfall, 45 per cent more than the usual 74.1 mm, news agency PTI reported.

Air quality index

Meanwhile, the air quality was recorded in the satisfactory category at 11 am on Thursday, with an Air Quality Index (AQI) reading of 56, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed.

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'.