Agra, July 30 (IANS) Fairly widespread rains in the last three days have delighted farmers in the Agra region as the delayed monsoon had triggered fears of a drought. Met department officials now say that spectre has receded.
Agra has received 30 mm rainfall in the past 24 hours and the downpour Monday was particularly heavy. Drizzle continues in the region. The weather office has forecast more rains Tuesday.
"It has been raining since Sunday in Aligarh, and it's fairly good rains," said Shaffi Munna, a Tamil journalist based in Aligarh. Mathura, Vrindavan and Firozabad have also reported fairly good showers.
"Kharif crop, bajra in particular, was in trouble and there were fears whether enough fodder would be available for the cattle. Luckily, rains in the past two days have dispelled the dark fears of drought for the moment," Ravi Singh, a farmer in Barauli Ahir block, said.
"But we hope the showers will continue a little longer as the deficit continues to be high at the moment. We still have a long way to go," he said.
At the Taj Mahal, tourists enjoyed their Sunday with a record crowd. "Visitors were thrilled at the sight of the Taj Mahal washed and clean, sparkling as ever. The greenery around the Taj Mahal added colour to the ambience," said tourist guide Ved Gautam.
But the city drenched in rain presented a dismal sight as water-logging and choked drains held up traffic for hours. "It took me 50 minutes to reach my shop on MG Road from my home in Pratap Pura," said photographer Vishal.
The Agra Municipal Corporation was flooded with complaints about choked drains. The water level in the Yamuna river has risen by two feet.
"Soon, we hope to see the river in spate like last year at Janmashtmi time," said Nandan Shrotriya, priest at the Mathuradheesh temple on the Yamuna Kinara road.
"If we get a few more heavy showers like on Monday, we hope prices of vegetables will fall. Right now, all vegetables are selling at exorbitant prices," commented insurance agent Sudheir Gupta.
The showers have come as a huge relief to the private discom Torrent Power Ltd., which was being targeted due to power shortage.
"The city was without power since 2 a.m. due to a major breakdown in the grid system. Trains were held up and tourists stranded at the Agra Cantt and Agra Fort stations," said banker Manohar Gidwani who commutes daily between Agra and Mathura.
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