Late-night trace rain brings along gusty winds

Since the monsoon withdrawal on October 2, the first spell of rain was recorded around 3 am Sunday. Although the city saw only trace rainfall (less than 0.1 mm), accompanying gusty winds reached speeds of up to 40 km per hour, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
While the monsoon system has passed the region, IMD Chandigarh director Surender Paul said storms and rain were still possible due to convection currents resulting from temperature differences. However, relief is likely from Monday, as dry weather is anticipated this week, although it may lead to rise in the maximum temperature.
While only trace rain was recorded at the airport observatory and there no rain in Sector 39, gusty winds prompted IMD to issue an orange alert.
Orange is the second highest of the four-colour warning system used by IMD and asks people to be prepared.
Mercury drops to 35°C
Due to the storm, the maximum temperature, which stayed consistent for the past three days at 35.7°C, fell to 35°C on Sunday, still 2.4 degrees above normal.
With the weather clearing up, the maximum temperature is likely to increase further this week and can go beyond 36°C as well. Though there are chances of rain in the region on October 8 and 9, it may not rain in Chandigarh.
As the city approaches winter, the maximum temperature is expected to start falling by the end of the month.
Meanwhile, the minimum temperature rose from 22°C on Saturday to 23.5°C on Sunday, 2.6 degrees above normal. Over the next three days, the maximum temperature will remain between 35°C and 36°C, and the minimum temperature between 22°C and 23°C.
Air quality still between satisfactory and moderate
Even as the Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi has started to cross 400 and enter the severe bracket, the air quality in Chandigarh is still mostly between the satisfactory and moderate brackets.
At 7pm on Sunday, the average AQI at the Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Station (CAAQMS) in Sector 22 was 99, and 94 at the Sector 25 station, both in the satisfactory bracket. AQI was 103 at Sector 53, which falls in the moderate bracket.
As per IMD officials, due to fall in temperature and anticyclonic conditions, AQI may start increasing. With the rise in stubble burning in neighbouring parts of Punjab, AQI usually starts climbing around the beginning of winter. It also tends to shoot past 400 around Diwali due to bursting of firecrackers.
An AQI between 51-100 can still cause minor breathing discomfort to sensitive people. Between 101-200, it can cause breathing discomfort to people with lung and heart diseases.
Strong winds topple 180-ft Ravan effigy
The strong winds past Saturday midnight caused a 180-foot-tall effigy of Ravan, erected at the Dussehra ground near Shalimar Mall in Panchkuka’s Sector 5, to collapse and break into three pieces.
The effigy had been put up a week before Dussehra, which falls on October 12, to allow the public time to pray and take pictures, before it is burnt.
A 25-member team had been working on the effigy for the past three months, with a budget of around ₹18 lakh. The effigy was set to be filled with eco-friendly green crackers.
Tejinder Chauhan, the artist behind the effigy, said, “We had finished setting it up on Saturday, but when we returned the next morning, it was lying on the ground in three pieces. It seems the strong winds loosened the rope used to secure it.”
He added that JCB machines were now being used to reconstruct the effigy, which will be re-erected by Monday.