Heavy traffic was reported near Akshardham, near the venue of the cultural extravaganza.
Heavy rain and hail stones hit the national capital this evening, minutes before Prime Minister Narendra Modi was to inaugurate Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's mega World Culture Festival on the banks of the Yamuna adding to the chaos on the roads.
The Delhi Traffic Police tweeted asking people to avoid using the roads near the venue.
The India Meteorological Department or IMD had issued a warning on Wednesday that "an intense western disturbance currently lying over Iran and neighbourhood would affect Indian sub-continent from March 11 onwards."
The IMD had said, "Rain or thundershowers could occur at most/many places over plains of northwest India." The venue of the event has a huge open-air stage, spread over an area occupied by six football fields, to accommodate the thousands of artistes who will take part in the fest. Besides, open enclosures have been put up to accommodate the more than 3.5 million people expected to attend it.