Delhi weather: Yellow alert issued till Tuesday
While the IMD has a ‘yellow’ alert in place for the next two days, there is an ‘orange’ alert in place for Wednesday, with forecasts of moderate to heavy rainfall.
Parts of the national capital recorded light to moderate rainfall on Sunday, keeping the maximum temperature below normal, said the India Meteorological Department (IMD), adding that precipitation will continue in the city over the next six days.
While the IMD has a ‘yellow’ alert in place for the next two days, there is an ‘orange’ alert in place for Wednesday, with forecasts of moderate to heavy rainfall.
The IMD issues a yellow alert to warn about a weather phenomenon occurring in a region.
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In case of rain, it is generally upgraded to ‘orange’ if moderate to heavy rainfall, or strong winds, are expected. A red alert is generally issued if very heavy rainfall is expected over a region, or an extreme weather event is expected.
Safdarjung, Delhi’s base weather station, recorded 0.1mm of rainfall between 8:30am and 5:30pm on Sunday. The Capital recorded 1.9mm of rainfall on Saturday and 117.2mm on Friday, making the monthly total 119.2mm so far. The normal monthly average for July is 210.6mm, said weather experts.
Among Delhi’s other stations, Lodhi Road recorded 4.8mm of rainfall, Ridge 7.6mm, Ayanagar 14.8mm, Delhi University 5.5mm, Jafarpur 3mm, Pitampura 23mm, Pusa 6mm and Mayur Vihar 11mm between 8:30 am and 5:30 pm, according to the official data.
The onset of monsoon in Delhi was declared on Thursday, with the Capital recording 117.2mm of rain in a span of 24 hours, pushing the temperature down significantly and giving the city its coolest day in 116 days on Thursday.
According to the weather office, the city received 1.9mm of rainfall between 8.30am on Friday and 8.30am on Saturday. Delhi, however, got no rain after that on Saturday.
The weather department classifies rainfall between ‘trace’ and 2.4 mm as ‘very light rainfall’, as ‘light rainfall’ when it is between 2.5 mm and 15.5 mm, as ‘moderate’ rainfall when it is between 15.6 mm and 64.4 mm and as ‘heavy’ when it is over 64.5 mm in a single day.
“We will continue to witness monsoon rains over northwest India and Delhi throughout this week, with intensity expected to be strongest on Wednesday. Delhi will receive more moderate to heavy rainfall this week,” said RK Jenamani, scientist, IMD.
In terms of minimum temperature, Delhi recorded a low of 26.2 degrees Celsius (°C) — two notches below normal for this time of the year, while relative humidity oscillated between 62 and 83%.
Delhi on Sunday recorded a maximum temperature of 35.7°C — one degree below normal, and a minimum of 26.2°C — two degrees below normal, said the IMD.
The maximum temperature is expected to be around 36 degrees on Monday, while the minimum will hover around the 27-degree mark.
Delhi’s air quality continued to improve, dropping down to an air quality index (AQI) reading of 76 (satisfactory), according to the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) daily 4pm bulletin on Sunday. It was 95 at the same time on Saturday.
Forecasts show that the AQI is likely to remain in the satisfactory range, owing to more rain in the coming week.