Sunny day in Delhi, mercury set to spike this week

While IMD had forecast a spell of very light rainfall in isolated pockets on the day, no rain was recorded until night

New Delhi

The maximum temperature was 35.4°C on Tuesday. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

It was a sunny day in the Capital—belying a week of intense rainfall, waterlogging and flooding—clocking a maximum temperature of 35.4 degrees Celsius (°C), which was 1.9°C above the normal, according to India Meteorological Department (IMD).

While IMD had forecast a spell of very light rainfall in isolated pockets on the day, no rain was recorded until night.

Mahesh Palawat, vice president at Skymet, said, “Clear weather is expected to continue throughout the week for the most part, with no forecast of any significant rain. There will be a change in wind direction in the next two-three days and once the westerlies and north-westerlies start impacting the region, the humidity will go down further.”

Hot and humid conditions persisted throughout the day. The minimum temperature was logged at 25.2°C, 0.4°C below the normal, but up from 23.9°C recorded a day before. The humidity was between 58% and 88%.

Palawat said that there might be a slight increase in temperature in the coming days.

According to IMD forecasts, the maximum temperature is expected to be around 33-35°C for the next two days and then increase to 34-36°C by Friday. The minimum temperature is expected to oscillate between 23°C and 26°C for the rest of the week.

Meanwhile, the city’s air quality index (AQI) deteriorated to the “moderate” category after a 11-day stretch of “satisfactory” air. The 24-hour average AQI was 105, according to the Central Pollution Control Board’s daily national bulletin.

Forecasts by the Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS) for Delhi suggest that the air quality is expected to be moderate for the next few days.

“The air quality is likely to be in the moderate category from Wednesday to Friday. The outlook for the subsequent six days is that the air quality is likely to be in the moderate category,” said the AQEWS bulletin on Tuesday evening.