Rain returns to bring down maximum temp in Lucknow

The rain improved the state capital’s Air Quality Index (AQI) from moderate to satisfactory on Saturday.

LUCKNOW: Rain and overcast sky significantly brought down maximum temperature significantly in the state capital on Saturday forcing people once again to wear woollens to stay guarded from fluctuating weather conditions.

Lucknowites enjoying weather after rain in Lucknow on Saturday (Deepak Gupta/HT)

Lucknow received 2.3 mm of rain on Saturday. The daytime temperature dropped to 26.3 degrees Celsius in the state capital, while the minimum temperature rose to 19 degrees Celsius, according to the IMD bulletin.

The rain posed challenges for people as several weddings were scheduled for Saturday. Many had to quickly shift the ceremony from open lawns to covered areas. “It started raining late Friday night, and there were intermittent spells, which forced us to rearrange our plans,” said Gaurav, who had come from Pune to attend his brother’s wedding held at a banquet hall on Station Road.

The forecast for Lucknow predicts a generally cloudy sky with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers on Sunday. The maximum and minimum temperatures are expected to be around 25.0 and 17.0 degrees Celsius, respectively, according to Mohd Danish, the meteorological office in-charge in Lucknow.

The IMD has issued a warning of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty winds (30-40 km/h) likely at isolated places over the state.

On Saturday, Orai recorded the highest rainfall in the state with 16 mm, followed by Jhansi with 14.4 mm, Bareilly with 10.7 mm, Aligarh with 10.4 mm, Bahraich with 9.6 mm, Hardoi with 7.6 mm, Sultanpur with 7 mm, Hamirpur with 6 mm, Najibabad and Shahjahanpur with 5.6 mm each, and Kanpur with 5.4 mm.

The rain improved the state capital’s Air Quality Index (AQI) from moderate to satisfactory on Saturday.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) daily bulletin, Lucknow’s AQI level was recorded at only 86, which is 10 points lower than its Friday record of 96 and much lower than Thursday’s record, which was 109.

It is worth mentioning that the AQI is categorised as follows: 0-50 (good), 51-100 (satisfactory), 101-200 (moderate), 201-300 (poor), 301-400 (very poor), and 401-500 (severe).