Delhi minimum temperature dips to 6.7°C; IMD issues yellow alert for rain, fog

Minimum temperature dips to 6.7°C; IMD issues yellow alert for rain, fog and thunderstorms; air quality remains poor

New Delhi: The Capital’s minimum temperature dipped further on Saturday as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued yellow alerts for the weekend, warning of possible rain along with thunderstorms and moderate to dense fog.

The minimum temperature was recorded at 6.7°C on Saturday, 1°C below normal. The minimum temperature a day earlier was clocked at 7.7°C. (Sanchit Khanna/ HT Photo)

The minimum temperature was recorded at 6.7°C on Saturday, 1°C below normal. The minimum temperature a day earlier was clocked at 7.7°C.

“The minimum temperature is set to see a sharp increase on Sunday due to cloudy conditions persisting in the city. The minimum is likely to be around 11–13 degrees Celsius on Sunday,” said an IMD official.

The Met department had issued a yellow alert for Saturday and Sunday, with rain forecast to continue till Monday under the influence of a third western disturbance this month.

“One or two spells of light rain are possible throughout the day on Saturday, accompanied by thunderstorms and gusty winds at speeds of 30–40 kmph,” the Met official said.

Meanwhile, the Capital’s air quality continued to remain in the poor category but deteriorated further and was clocked at 278 (poor) at 9 am on Saturday, compared to the 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) of 253 (poor) recorded at 4 pm on Friday, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

According to forecasts by the Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi (AQEWS), however, the air quality is likely to deteriorate to the very poor category by Friday evening.

“The air quality is likely to be in the very poor category from Saturday to Monday. The outlook for the subsequent six days is that the air quality is likely to be in the very poor to poor category,” said the AQEWS bulletin on Saturday morning.