Thanks to rains, Delhi sees its coldest April day in a decade

According to IMD, the normal maximum temperature during April 6-10 is 35.1°C, making Wednesday’s temperature nearly 7°C below normal.

Scattered showers, particularly in the first half of Wednesday, led to Delhi experiencing its coolest April day in a decade, according to official data from the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The Centre’s early warning system for Delhi stated that the AQI is likely to rise to the moderate category and is “likely to be in the moderate to poor category” for the next six days. (HT Photo/Parveen Kumar)

The maximum temperature on Wednesday was recorded at 28.2 degrees Celsius (°C), the lowest maximum temperature since April 23, 2016, when it was recorded at 27.2°C. This follows Tuesday’s maximum of 28.8°C – the coldest April day in three years.

According to IMD, the normal maximum temperature during April 6-10 is 35.1°C, making Wednesday’s temperature nearly 7°C below normal. The minimum temperature was also noticeably below normal at 16.8°C, against the normal of 20°C.

HT graphic

Experts attributed the unusually low temperatures to western disturbances. “Western disturbances combined with an induced cyclonic circulation over Rajasthan caused widespread rain over many places along the northern plains, with some areas experiencing hailstorms too. The western disturbances had been travelling at a lower altitude since March 15, which was the reason for unusually low temperatures in April.

However, now the weather system is moving eastward, and we will see a gradual increase in temperature,” said Mahesh Palawat, vice-president of Skymet Weather. IMD’s seven-day forecast predicts mainly clear skies throughout the coming week, with a daily increase of 1-2°C expected in the maximum temperature, reaching between 36°C and 38°C by April 14.

The minimum temperature is expected to fall between 14°C and 16°C on Thursday before following a similar rise. Safdarjung, Delhi’s base station for weather, received 6.4mm of rain in 24 hours till 8:30am. Wednesday, while Palam logged 4.4mm till 8:30am and another 1.2mm till 8:30pm, Lodhi Road logged 5.6mm till 8:30am and trace rainfall till 5:30pm. The highest wind speed recorded was 56 km/h at Palam around 1:30pm.

The rainfall also improved the city’s Air Quality Index, with the 24-hour average recorded in the satisfactory category at 93 at 4:00 p.m. by the Central Pollution Control Board. This marked the first time in 19 days that the city’s AQI was recorded in the satisfactory category. March 20 was the last time the city’s 24-hour average AQI was in the satisfactory category, also at 93, marking the first satisfactory air day since October 9, 2025, when it had logged an AQI of 99.

The Centre’s early warning system for Delhi stated that the AQI is likely to rise to the moderate category and is “likely to be in the moderate to poor category” for the next six days.

According to CPCB classification, an AQI between zero and 50 is considered “good,” 51 to 100 “satisfactory,” 101 to 200 “moderate,” 201 to 300 “poor,” 301 to 400 “very poor,” and 401 to 500 “severe.”