New Delhi: The minimum temperature in Delhi settled at 27.5 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, a notch above normal, amid a forecast of partly cloudy sky with possibility of thunder and lightning later in the day. The relative humidity at 8:30 AM on Tuesday stood at 57 per cent, according to data shared by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Partly cloudy sky had led to a marginal dip in the maximum temperature in Delhi on Monday though it was still two to four notches above normal.
At the Safdarjung Observatory, Delhi's base station, the maximum temperature settled at 42.4 degrees Celsius, two notches above normal. It was 45.6 degrees Celsius, the highest this year so far, on Sunday. The MeT Office has forecast partly cloudy sky with possibility of development of thunder and lightning later in the day on Tuesday, with the maximum temperature expected to settle around 41 degrees Celsius. The minimum and maximum temperature readings on Wednesday are likely to settle at 28 degrees Celsius and 43 degrees Celsius respectively with a mainly clear sky forecast, according to the IMD data. On Sunday, Delhi had seen a tormenting heatwave pushing the maximum to 49.2 degrees Celsius at Mungeshpur in northwest Delhi and 49.1 degrees Celsius at Najafgarh in the southwest parts of the city. The temperature will start rising again on Wednesday and may hit the 45-degree mark on Friday, the IMD said on Monday. The Met office has issued a "yellow" alert warning of a heatwave in parts of the city on Friday. The air quality index (AQI) of Delhi was recorded in the poor (277) category around 9:30 AM, data from CPCB showed. An AQI between zero and 50 is considered good, 51 and 100 satisfactory, 101 and 200 moderate, 201 and 300 poor, 301 and 400 very poor, and 401 and 500 severe.—PTI