Cloudy skies bring relief from heat in Delhi; IMD forecasts rain, thunderstorms and lightning

NEW DELHI: Delhi witnessed a pleasant change in weather on Friday, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasting a partly cloudy sky and the possibility of thunder and lightning during the day.

The national capital woke up to cloudy skies, recording a minimum temperature of 24°C — the highest so far this season. The weather office has predicted thunderstorms accompanied by rain later in the day, with the maximum temperature likely to hover around 39°C.

Air quality remained in the ‘poor’ category, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) recorded at 241 at 9 am.

Among monitoring stations, Palam recorded a minimum temperature of 25°C, 3.2 degrees above normal. Lodhi Road registered 22.4°C, 1.4 degrees above normal, while the Ridge station logged 24.7°C, 1.7 degrees above normal.

Ayanagar recorded 22.8°C, 0.7 degrees above normal.

According to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), 28 monitoring stations reported ‘poor’ air quality, six fell in the ‘very poor’ category, and 11 recorded ‘moderate’ levels.

As per CPCB standards, an AQI between 0–50 is classified as ‘good’, 51–100 ‘satisfactory’, 101–200 ‘moderate’, 201–300 ‘poor’, 301–400 ‘very poor’, and 401–500 ‘severe’.

The Met has also forecast scattered thunder and rain in parts of the subdivision that includes Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi. However, temperatures are still expected to rise in Delhi.

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