At 48 deg C, Delhi records its highest-ever June temperature

The mercury shattered all records in Delhi on Monday with parts of the national capital registering 48 degrees Celsius, the highest for the month of June.

The all-time record for the city is of 48.4 degrees Celsius, recorded by the Palam Observatory on May 26, 1998, Devendra Pradhan, Additional Director General of India Meteorological Department, said.

"The Palam Observatory recorded an all-time high for the month of June at 48 degrees Celsius on Monday. The factors that led to this are dry westerly winds, no effect of a western disturbance in the plains and intense heating in the month of June," said IMD's regional weather forecasting chief Kuldeep Srivastava.

"Southwesterly winds on Tuesday may cause the temperature to drop by one or two notches. However, the heatwave will persist," he said.

The temperature in the Palam area is always one or two notches more than that at the rest of the places as emissions due to high aviation activity also adds to the heat, Srivastava said.

The Safdarjung Observatory, which provides official figures for the city, recorded a high of 45.6 and a low of 27.2 degrees Celsius.

The weather stations at the Delhi Ridge, Ayanagar and Lodhi Road recorded the mercury at 47.9, 47 and 46 degrees Celsius.

Private forecaster Skymet Weather said, "This significant rise in the day temperatures is the result of unabated flow of hot and dry winds from northwest direction."