Large parts of Delhi remained under the brunt of scorching heat on Tuesday, with temperatures exceeding normal levels and the Safdarjung Observatory recording a maximum of 43.5 degrees Celsius, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
Stations at Ayanagar, Ridge and Lodhi Road narrowly exceeded official heatwave norms by 0.2 degrees, 0.4 degrees and 0.7 degrees Celsius, respectively, the Met office said.
Read also | A dust storm and light rain are likely to hit Delhi and the NCR amid intense heatwave
Relief expected from May 29
However, residents are likely to feel some relief from May 29 onwards, as the IMD has predicted thunderstorm and rain activity in the city.
“Heatwave conditions in the region are likely to subside from May 29 due to a possible western disturbance coupled with incursion of moisture from the Bay of Bengal due to possible formation of an east-west tropospheric low trough,” the IMD said.
On Tuesday, Ayanagar recorded a maximum temperature of 44.8 degrees Celsius, 2.7 degrees above normal, while Ridge recorded 44.6 degrees Celsius, 2.9 degrees above normal.
Lodhi Road recorded 43.8 degrees Celsius, 3.8 degrees above normal, and Palam recorded 44 degrees Celsius, 3 degrees above normal.
The minimum temperature in the national capital settled at 26.8 degrees Celsius, 0.2 degrees above normal. Among other stations, Palam recorded 27.5 degrees Celsius, Ridge 26.7 degrees Celsius, Lodhi Road 25.6 degrees Celsius and Ayanagar 27.1 degrees Celsius.
Read also | Delhi records warmest May night in 14 years
The IMD issues a yellow alert
The IMD issued a yellow alert for heatwave conditions on Wednesday, predicting the maximum temperature to reach 45 degrees Celsius and the minimum temperatures to be around 28 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, Delhi’s air quality stood at 252 in the ‘poor’ category as of 6 pm on Tuesday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
According to CPCB standards, an air quality index (AQI) reading between zero and 50 is considered “good,” between 51 and 100 is “satisfactory,” between 101 and 200 is “moderate,” between 201 and 300 is “poor,” between 301 and 400 is “very poor,” and between 401 and 500 is “severe.”
