Sharp but scattered spells of rain came down on pockets of Calcutta and its surrounding areas on Saturday afternoon.

Independence Day and the next few days are likely to see extremely sweaty conditions, the Met office has said. An occasional thunderstorm can bring some relief but the discomfort index is likely to be on the higher side over the next few days.

On Saturday, the showers took place between 1.30pm and 5pm. The showers were accompanied by frequent bouts of lightning.

Around 2pm, the rain made driving difficult on Ballygunge Circular Road. At the same time, EM Bypass was also being lashed by a strong spell of rain. Salt Lake and adjoining areas also got drenched.

Esplanade, New Market and adjoining areas in central Calcutta were comparatively drier.

According to the figures with the pumping stations of the civic body, Patuli got around 35mm of rain, EM Bypass got around 25mm and Behala got 20mm. The Met office recorded around 10mm of rain in Alipore.

Many people who had stepped out on a weekend were caught in the showers. Many of them rushed to a nearby mall. The showers led to traffic snarls across thoroughfares.

The immediate forecast is that of hot and sultry weather.

“Rain, if any, will be like Saturday’s showers. They are likely to be localised. The high moisture incursion can lead to the formation of cumulonimbus clouds,” said Sanjib Bandyopadhyay, the deputy director general, India Meteorological Department, Calcutta.

With the monsoon trough hovering at the foothills of the Himalayas, districts of north Bengal are likely to get heavy rain over the next few days.

“The southwest monsoon currents are active. But in the absence of any major system over the Bay of Bengal and adjoining coastline, south Bengal is unlikely to get sustained rainfall. The currents are being drawn towards the monsoon trough,” Bandyopadhyay said.

In the absence of heavy rain, the weather in Calcutta has been sultry. The minimum relative humidity has been over 60 per cent consistently. The humidity content is only likely to increase over the next few days, said the Met office.