Wind, light rain bring brief relief from soaring heat in Delhi

The maximum temperature which had remained at 40 degrees Celsius or above from April 8 to 12 at the Safdarjung weather observatory fell slightly on Wednesday and Thursday. On Thursday, the maximum temperature settled at 39.4 degrees Celsius, three degrees above normal.

At 8.30 pm, the temperature had fallen to around 29.4 degrees Celsius.

The respite from heat wave conditions was brought by a western disturbance that has been affecting the western Himalayan region. The western disturbance lies over Jammu and Kashmir and the neighbourhood, according to an India Meteorological Department (IMD) update issued on Thursday night.

Other weather stations in Delhi continued to report heat wave conditions on Thursday, including the observatories at the Ridge, Pitampura, Najafgarh and Mungeshpur, where the maximum temperature remained above 40 degrees Celsius.

The IMD had predicted on Thursday evening that thunderstorms, along with light to moderate rainfall, would occur over parts of Delhi-NCR, including North Delhi, Northwest Delhi, West Delhi, and Southwest Delhi, Karnal, Nuh, Panipat, Rewari and Jhajjar.

The maximum temperature in Delhi is likely to return to around 42 degrees Celsius on April 18, the IMD forecast indicates. Heat wave conditions are on the forecast from April 18 to 20. The IMD update issued on Thursday night also said that a two to three degree rise in maximum temperature is very likely over northwest India during the next three days.