October days to stay warm, evenings may get cooler

GURGAON: The city woke up to a hot Saturday, unusual post-Diwali weather as the mercury hovered around the mid-30s, more reminiscent of summer than the final stretches of autumn. This is how the weather will remain as you start your working week on Monday, but temperatures are likely to drop a couple of notches after that, according to the weatherman.

There is also a possibility of rain, which will pull the mercury down further, because of a western disturbance but met officials say that weather system is still too premature to comment on.

"There is a western disturbance system, but at present we cannot say if it can trigger a significant weather change across NCR. We are likely to see similar weather for the next 3-4 days," said a regional meteorological department official. "This is likely to affect the Himachal and J&K regions. What we can say is that maximum temperature in the city is likely to remain 34-35 degrees Celsius while the minimum will come down to 19 degrees. So yes, evenings are certainly going to be cooler as the month progresses although daytime temperatures might stay the way they are now."

Saturday's maximum temperature in the city was 35 degrees. The heat took many by surprise. "Normally, by the time Diwali arrives, the weather turns cooler. It also get windy and mornings and evenings are pleasant. This year, it looks like summer is not in a mood to leave," said Kanak, a resident of Mahindra Aura in New Palam Vihar.

The good news is that the wind will pick up. "Wind movement will see a significant increase," said the met official. "There is a movement of north-westerly winds towards western UP. As a result, pollution levels are likely to come down as well."

The official also said if rainfall activity happens, there will be a sharp dip in mercury. "But as of now, the western disturbance is not looking as though it might have such an impact for Delhi-NCR. So, we will have to wait and watch," the official said.