IMD says warmer days ahead in Delhi, yellow alert issued for Monday
According to the IMD forecast, the maximum is expected to climb to 44°C by Monday, and 45°C by Tuesday
Partially cloudy skies led to Delhi recording a maximum temperature of 41.4 degrees Celsius (°C) on Saturday, a notch above normal for this time of the year, and a slight dip from the 43°C the previous day. However, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted warmer days ahead, and has issued a yellow alert for heatwave-like conditions in the Capital on Monday.
IMD officials noted that though the maximum on Saturday was relatively lower than the past two weeks, the minimum temperature actually climbed to 30°C, two degrees above the normal and two degrees above the 28°C on Friday.
“Cloudy skies have been observed for a couple of days. When there is a cloud cover overnight, the heat released from the earth’s surface cannot escape, as a result of which the minimum goes up,” an IMD official said, on condition of anonymity.
The Met department also predicted that parts of the city may be affected by heatwave or heatwave-like conditions by Monday.
“The influence of the western disturbance which could be seen for the last few days is fading, and dry and hot westerlies are going to affect the weather now… Heat waves might be observed in some places but the intensity will not be as high as before,” said Krishna Mishra, scientist at IMD.
According to the IMD forecast, the maximum is expected to climb to 44°C by Monday, and 45°C by Tuesday.
“Western disturbances contribute to cyclonic circulation, which results in light rain. But now, westerlies will influence Delhi for the next few days, after which the western disturbances will come,” said Mahesh Palawat, vice president at Skymet.
Meanwhile, Delhi’s air quality remained in the poor category on Saturday, with an air quality index (AQI) reading of 234 at 4pm, according to the Central Pollution Control Board’s daily national bulletin. The AQI was 228 (poor) a day before.
The Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi has forecast Delhi’s air to stay in the poor category over the weekend.
“The air quality is likely to improve marginally but remain in poor category on Sunday. The air quality is likely to be in poor category till Tuesday. The outlook for subsequent six days is that the air quality is likely to be in poor to moderate category,” the bulletin stated.