"The downpour was heavy around 10 in the morning and later it drizzled for nearly three hours, bringing the temperature down several notches," said LIC agent Sudhier Gupta whose car was stranded at the Soor Sadan auditorium crossing. Elsewhere in the city, the low-lying areas were inundated, as the nullahs overflowed sweeping away garbage dumps.

 With most schools scheduled to open Monday, the respite from heat is a good sign.

"If the rains had not visited us today, we would have tried to persuade school managements through the district authorities to postpone opening by a couple of days. But now the scenario has changed for the better," said Malti, mother of two school going kids.

 Thought the weather office is yet to confirm whether the monsoon has really advanced into West UP, but farmers and experienced hands see clear indications of a wet spell beginning. Ravi Singh, a progressive farmer of Barauli Aheer block said "it began hesitatingly but later the rain picked up some momentum. Most farmers will now go in for sowing. We are already late by a week or ten days."