Rain, thunderstorm damage wheat crop in several districts of Punjab

Rain, thunderstorm damage wheat crop in several districts of Punjab

Ludhiana: Rains lashed many parts of Punjab as the minimum temperatures hovered around the normal levels in the state and its neighbouring Haryana on Saturday.

According to the meteorological department, Ludhiana and Amritsar received 15.4 mm and 4.2 mm of rain, respectively. Patiala registered 2 mm of rainfall, Pathankot 1 mm, Bathinda 7 mm and Faridkot 4.8 mm.

Rains accompanied by strong winds came at a time when wheat was ready for harvest. Wheat procurement season starts from April 1 in Punjab and Haryana.

In Muktsar, rain and hailstorm on Friday late night wreaked havoc as it flattened the wheat crop in most parts of the district. Also, farmers are a harried lot as rainfall and high-velocity winds caused lodging in wheat crops in Ludhiana district.

The Union territory of Chandigarh and Ambala in Haryana too received 8.6 and 5.6 mm of rain respectively. Meanwhile, minimum temperatures in Amritsar, Patiala and Ludhiana were 19.1 degrees Celsius, 17 degrees Celsius and 17.6 degrees Celsius respectively. Pathankot registered minimum temperature of 17.9 degrees Celsius, Bathinda 16.4 degrees Celsius, Faridkot 17 degrees Celsius and Gurdaspur 17.5 degrees Celsius, respectively.

In neighbouring Haryana, Ambala and Hisar registered their minimum temperatures at 17.4 degrees Celsius and 20.7 degrees Celsius, respectively. Meanwhile, Delhi on Saturday registered a minimum temperature of 21.8 degrees Celsius, four notches above the season’s average, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The humidity levels were recorded at 64 per cent at 8:30 am.

The weatherman has forecast a thunderstorm with rain during the day. The maximum temperature is likely to hover around 37 degrees Celsius, it said.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) of the national capital was recorded in the “moderate” category with a reading of 181 at 9 am, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).