Delhi weather today: IMD forecasts heavy rain; orange alert for 8 states

Rain improves air quality in the capital; IMD forecasts thunderstorms and gusty winds in Delhi, and heavy to very heavy rain across eight states till June 26

People in Delhi woke to a pleasant summer morning on Sunday with relatively cooler weather. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday issued a yellow alert for Delhi, warning of thunderstorms with lightning and moderate to heavy rainfall.

 

Generally cloudy skies with moderate to heavy rain or thunderstorms are likely, accompanied by lightning and gusty winds of 30–40 kmph, occasionally reaching up to 50 kmph during storms.

 

The showers are expected to bring the maximum temperature down to 35–37 degrees Celsius, with the minimum likely to hover around 27–29 degrees Celsius. 

 

Delhi weather: Weekly forecast

Delhi is expected to witness largely cloudy weather over the next seven days, with the IMD issuing a yellow alert for thunderstorms, lightning, and moderate to light rainfall through June 27. Gusty winds between 30–40 kmph, occasionally reaching 50 kmph during evening or night thunderstorms, have been forecast. While the intensity of rainfall may vary, no heatwave conditions are expected during the week. Cloudy skies are likely to persist from June 24 to June 27.

Rain improves air quality in Delhi

Delhi’s air quality continues to show improvement on Sunday, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) slipping into the ‘satisfactory’ category after remaining ‘poor’ for several days.

 

The air quality was recorded 'satisfactory' at 9 am on June 22, with an AQI reading of 83, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed. 

 

According to the CPCB, an AQI between 0 and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51–100 ‘satisfactory’, 101–200 ‘moderate’, 201–300 ‘poor’, 301–400 ‘very poor’ and 401–500 ‘severe’.

IMD issues orange alert for several states

The IMD has issued an orange alert for eight states, warning of intense rainfall activity. The alert covers Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, and Uttar Pradesh.

 

Earlier, on June 21, the IMD had warned of “heavy to very heavy rainfall” over Northwest India, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and the Konkan-Goa region, with the wet spell expected to continue from June 21 to June 26.

 

"Conditions are favourable for further advance of monsoon into the remaining parts of North Arabian Sea, more areas of Rajasthan, West Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and some parts of Jammu & Kashmir–Gilgit-Baltistan–Muzaffarabad and Ladakh during the next two days," the IMD said.