Heatwave to continue in Delhi; IMD issues red alert till Saturday

New Delhi on Tuesday got a temporary but limited respite from the heat when easterly winds brought down the temperature by about a couple of degrees.

The temperature drop of 1.7-3.5 degrees Celsius across the city did not bring any comfort from the blistering heat. Delhi has seen a heatwave in the last four days.

The Met department has sounded a red alert for heatwave and severe heatwave conditions from Thursday to Saturday, and an orange alert for heatwave in some areas on Wednesday. Towards the end of the week, the mercury could soar, possibly reaching 46 degrees Celsius by Friday.

On Tuesday, the mercury dropped by about two degrees at the city's base station in Safdarjung which recorded 42.4 degrees, two notches below normal and against 44.1 a day earlier. The minimum temperature, however, soared to 30.7, which was the highest for the season.

According to weather scientists, the temperatures dropped due to easterly winds. "The city saw easterly winds on Tuesday. Easterly winds are generally cooler, as in the eastern part of the country temperatures are generally lower than the north-west.... This is a temporary relief and the temperature will begin to rise from Wednesday onwards," RK Jenamani, senior weather scientist at India Meteorological Department, said.

On Tuesday, the humidity too increased and was between 24% and 62%. It was between 15% and 50% on Monday.

Najafgarh in south-west Delhi saw the maximum temperature dip to 43.9 degrees Celsius from 47.4 on Monday. At Mungeshpur, the temperature fell to 44.6 degrees Celsius from 47.1 a day earlier.

Other areas which saw the temperature drop were Pitampura at 43.2 degrees Celsius, Jafarpur at 43.8, Pusa (west Delhi) at 43.3, Ayanagar at 42.4, Ridge at 41.5, Palam at 42.4, Raj Ghat at 40.3, and Lodhi Road at 41.4 degrees Celsius.

The maximum temperature may hover around 44 degrees Celsius on Wednesday and reach 45 by Thursday.

The air quality index was 239 in the poor range.