Who reined in the rain?

the umbrella in the corner of the hall cuts a rather sorry figure. having been left high and dry, it's not having a brolly good time for sure. great expectations notwithstanding, the problem is that delhi hasn't exactly been drenched by the rain. yes, despite the forecasts made by the meteorological department, the heavens haven't opened with the rimjhim gire saawan tune.a dry spell when pitter-patter is the theme of the season? delhiites are restless. ye dil maange rain! one question seems to unite practically everybody's lips: whatever happened to the monsoon? officially speaking, the monsoon has already touched down in town. according to meteorological department director s c gupta, the monsoon made an entry into the metro on june 23. ``roughly 14 cm of rainfall has been recorded since june 1, and this figure marks an increase of 3 cm above the normal level.'' echoes deputy director general of meteorology s r kalsi, ``the cumulative rainfall recorded since june 1 is above normal.'' going by the black and white of official figures, the capital would appear to be comfortably placed as regards rainfall, even though last year's readings seem to be wetter. as to the why behind the dry sky, gupta has a reason for the damp squib that the monsoon has proved to be this season. ``the pattern has been such that hardly any cloud formation has gathered over delhi. consequently, the city has not received the rain it expects.'' but cloud formations change. in fact, gupta concedes as much. ``the prevailing pattern will not last long. it's just a matter of time before delhi receives its share of rainfall.'' hopes run high, buoyed up as they are by the met department's predictions. the need of the hour is a refreshing shower. and, as the umbrella in the corner will tell you, it won't come a day too soon!