NEW DELHI: Winds speed went up to 70km/hr on Thursday night as a gusty storm hit the capital, accompanied with a short but intense spell of rain.
On Friday, however, Delhi recorded yet another hot day with the maximum temperature recorded at 39 degrees Celsius.
The southwest monsoon is likely to reach Delhi by June 15, 12 days before its usual date of June 27, India Meteorological Department officials said on Friday.
IMD has forecast more rain in the early hours of Saturday, with showers expected during the day as well.
Light to moderate rain has been predicted from Saturday to Wednesday, with a possibility of monsoon showers striking the capital during this spell.
Kuldeep Srivastava, scientist at IMD, said Thursday night’s storm led to an extremely low minimum temperature of 20.4 degrees Celsius, which is eight degrees below normal.
“We can expect more rain on Friday night and in the early hours of Saturday.
Meanwhile, light to moderate showers along with gusty winds of 40 km/hr are expected on Saturday,” said Srivastava.
Monsoon rains could also hit Delhi by next week, with the southwest monsoon currently progressing faster than usual.
On Friday, the IMD said conditions were favourable for the southwest monsoon to advance into more parts of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal and some parts of east Uttar Pradesh in the next 48 hours.
“Further, the southwest monsoon is likely to advance over remaining parts of the country outside south Rajasthan and Kutch region of Gujarat during in the next few days,” the IMD said.
Till 8.30am on Friday, Safdarjung — Delhi’s base station — had received 7.8mm of rainfall, while Lodhi road and Pitampura recorded 7.6 and 7mm of rainfall, respectively, during this period.
Najafgarh was the city’s warmest location on Friday, with a maximum of 41.6 degrees Celsius.
Lodhi road, meanwhile, recorded the lowest minimum temperature at 19.8 degrees Celsius.
Delhi’s relative humidity continued to remain on the higher side, oscillating between 47T and 91% in the last 24 hours.
Delhi’s air quality was in the ‘moderate’ category on Friday with an overall air quality index (AQI) of 145.
Agencies forecast strong winds and rain to help the city air improve further in the next three days.