Gurugram: Humidity still high, but clouds & wind keep mercury in check

GURUGRAM: Some areas of the city received very light showers on Friday night, even as most parts of the day remained hot and humid increasing the discomfort level among residents. However, the partly cloudy skies and prevailing strong surface winds of 20-25kmph gusting up to 30 kmph during the day prevented any significant rise in the mercury level.
On Friday, the weather station in the city recorded the maximum temperature at 38.5 degrees Celsius — four notches above the normal. It was 39 degrees the previous day. The minimum temperature also saw a dip from Thursday’s 26.6 degrees Celsius to 25.5 degrees — a notch below the season’s normal. The relative humidity index oscillated between 66% and 76% during the day.
In fact, the city has been receiving scanty rainfall over the past few days. While the rainfall activity is expected to remain dormant in the next three days, there is a possibility of isolated thundershowers during the period, according to India Meteorological Department (IMD). Between June 1 and July 15, the city received a seasonal rainfall of 82.1 mm as the deficit stood at 39%.
According to the weather department, the monsoon trough now passes through the centre of a well-marked low pressure area over the northeast Arabian Sea and adjoining coastal areas and the western disturbance lies over Afghanistan and adjoining northern Pakistan.
“Even though the rainfall activity is likely to pick up its intensity and distribution from July 19, there is a possibility of isolated thundershowers during the next coming days. There will be no significant change in temperature in the next five days,” said Manmohan Singh, director, IMD Chandigarh.
For Saturday, the IMD predicted partly cloudy skies with one or two spells of rain and thundershowers. The minimum and maximum temperature is expected to hover around 25 and 36 degrees, respectively.
Meanwhile, the city’s air quality on Friday remained satisfactory for the second consecutive day. The overall AQI reading was 74 as against 80 the previous day.
Meanwhile, Delhi saw another dry day with partial clouds, no winds and no rain leading to rise in temperature with humidity increasing discomfort. The weather department, however, expects light rain for the next seven days.
According to weather analysts, the monsoon trough line is still south of its normal position which is delaying the rains in the capital.
Safdarjung, Delhi’s base station, recorded a maximum temperature of 38.6 degrees Celsius, four notches above the season’s average, on Friday. A day earlier, it was 38.4 degrees. The minimum temperature was 27.5 degrees Celsius compared with 28.4 degrees Celsius a day earlier. The humidity levels oscillated between 83% and 51%.
“The city is likely to see a partially cloudy sky along with the possibility of light rain on Saturday. The maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to hover around 37 and 28 degrees Celsius, respectively, on Saturday,” said an official from India Meteorological Department.
Meanwhile, the city’s air quality improved a tad within the ‘satisfactory’ levels. According to the Central Pollution Control Board, on Friday, the air quality index of the city was 79 compared with 89 a day earlier.
“For the next three days (16th, 17th, 18th), peak wind speed is likely to be about 14-22 km/h causing moderate dispersion and AQI is likely to be within ‘satisfactory’ due to expected light/trace rain spells,” said a statement from SAFAR.