New Delhi: The city saw the warmest July day and night in two years. The maximum temperature rose to 39.2 degrees celsius, four degrees above normal, while the minimum temperature settled at 30.2 degrees, three notches above normal Thursday. The heat index or the ‘feels-like’ temperature stood at 48 degrees celsius at 2.30 pm.Higher maximum and minimum temperatures in July were last recorded in 2024 at 39.3 degrees celsius and 30.4 degrees celsius, respectively, according to IMD. Hot and humid conditions are likely to continue till Saturday. There are chances of rain from Saturday evening to July 22. IMD explains that hot and humid conditions are when the maximum temperature remains three degrees above normal along with above-normal relative humidity.“Respite is expected from Saturday evening as a spell of very light to light rain is expected. No major change in maximum temperatures is expected during the next two days, thereafter, fall by 3-5 degrees is likely,” said a Met official.The maximum temperature is likely to stay between 38 and 40 degrees celsius Friday, but it may dip to around 35-37 degrees Saturday and further to around 32-34 degrees by July 22. However, the minimum temperature is predicted to remain around 28-30 degrees Saturday and may drop to about 22-25 degrees by July 22.In July so far, Safdarjung, Delhi’s base station, logged 132.2 mm rainfall against the month’s normal of 209.7 mm.Meanwhile, the city’s air quality remained ‘moderate’ with an AQI reading of 176, against 136 Wednesday. However, Anand Vihar was the most polluted location with ‘poor’ AQI of 355.
