Monsoon to arrive in Indian capital over weekend

A lower atmospheric pressure around the Bay of Bengal has delayed by a few days the arrival of monsoon in the Indian capital as well as some northern and eastern Indian states, said local media Wednesday.

"The low-pressure area formed in the Bay of Bengal, adjoining Odisha, halted the moisture content from moving toward the national capital both from the north-east and south-west," Indo-Asian News Service quoted an Indian Meteorological Department official as saying.

Meanwhile, meteorological officials expect monsoon to start in the Indian capital by July 1, about three days later than expected, said Indo-Asian News Service.

"Low pressure area created around the Bay of Bengal has defused and reached around Vidarbha in Maharashtra (western India)," the news service quoted Mahesh Palawat, a private weather forecaster, as saying.

Other northern and eastern Indian states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand have received limited amount of rains so far this year, while Delhi also had some showers in the past week. Endit