Delhi temperature may settle at 40 degrees Celsius, IMD predicts a heatwave

The minimum temperature recorded early on Tuesday was 18.8 degrees Celsius, a degree above normal, and lower than the 22.2 degrees recorded on Monday morning. The relative humidity at 8.30 am on Tuesday was 48 per cent, and the temperature at the same time was 24.8 degrees Celsius, at the Safdarjung weather observatories.

The IMD suggested people should avoid heat exposure, and wear light coloured cotton clothes. The heat is considered tolerable for the general public but can be a moderate health concern for vulnerable people including those with chronic diseases and elderly people, going by the IMD’s warning on the impact of heatwaves.

A heatwave is also on the forecast for parts of Rajasthan, southern Haryana and parts of Gujarat.

While a maximum temperature of 40 degrees and heatwave are on the forecast for Delhi on Wednesday as well, the maximum temperature is likely to fall to around 38 degrees on April 1 with strong winds, the IMD’s six-day forecast indicates.

Meanwhile, Delhi’s air quality deteriorated to be in the ‘poor’ category on Monday with an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 251. Dust continues to be the dominant pollutant, according to the SAFAR forecasting system. The AQI is likely to remain in the ‘poor’ category on Tuesday, and could deteriorate within the ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ categories over the next two days due to slow wind speed.

The forecast also mentions a possibility of dust intrusion from the western region on Tuesday. The Air Quality Early Warning System said in an update on Monday that dust raising winds are likely over parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat, and the transport of dust from these areas could impact air quality over northwest India.