Amid scorching temperatures, IMD puts Delhi on ‘orange’ alert until May 26

Delhi faces extreme heat, with temperatures reaching 46°C. An orange alert warns of continued heatwave conditions for six days.

New Delhi

Motorists shield themselves from the noon sun. (Arvind Yadav/HT Photo)

Delhi continued to sizzle under the scorching sun on Wednesday, with the temperature crossing 46 degrees Celsius (°C) at multiple locations across the city and the base station at Safdarjung recording a maximum of 44.5°C, which was one degree above normal. However, no respite seems to be in the offing, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issuing an “orange alert” for the next six days, until May 26, warning of heatwave conditions and maximum temperatures of 43-47°C.

According to IMD data, the Mungeshpur weather station clocked a maximum of 46.3°C and the north Delhi ridge station clocked 46.5°C, prolonging heatwave conditions for a third day in a row. As per IMD data, the stations at Mungeshpur, Lodhi Road, Ayanagar and Ridge clocked a maximum temperature above 40°C that was 4.5°C above normal—the condition for a heatwave day.

A heatwave is also declared if the temperature touches 45°C or more, irrespective of the departure from normal. A “severe” heatwave is declared when the departure is 6.5°C or more above normal.

“With clear skies and dry westerly winds persisting, Delhi-NCR continued to record high temperatures, similar to large parts of northwest and central India. No significant change in weather conditions is likely ahead, till at least the weekend, meaning heatwave conditions should persist in the city,” an IMD official said.

“For record keeping, heatwave days are logged only when Safdarjung meets the criteria,” an official said.

Meteorological experts said a western disturbance is also expected to impact northwest India from May 23, possibly bringing some rainfall in Punjab and Haryana. “This thundery development may possibly impact Delhi too. We will have to wait and observe. However, the next two to three days currently show similar temperatures, hovering close to 46-47°C,” said Mahesh Palawat, vice president at Skymet.

Vishwas Chitale, Fellow, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), said that according to CEEW’s district-level heat risk assessment, more than half of the districts in Delhi fall under very high risk.

“Districts such as North West Delhi and New Delhi have also recorded an increase of around three to four additional very warm nights annually during 2012–2022 compared to the 1982–2011 baseline. Rising warm nights are particularly concerning because they reduce the body’s ability to recover from daytime heat stress. Addressing this requires cities to move beyond reactive responses and operationalise heat action plans through measures, such as heat-health early warning systems, cooling centres, water access, and protection for outdoor workers, alongside long-term investments in cool roofs, urban greening, restoration of water bodies, and heat-resilient infrastructure,” he said.

Meanwhile, Delhi’s minimum was 28.3°C on Wednesday, which was two degrees above normal. It is expected to hover between 27° and 29°C until the weekend.

In terms of air quality, Delhi’s air was back in the “moderate” zone, with an air quality index (AQI) of 168, down from a reading of 208 (poor) a day earlier. On Tuesday, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) in NCR had also invoked stage-1 measures of the Graded Response Action Plan (Grap) with immediate effect.