Delhi records warm Friday; rain, thunderstorms likely over weekend

New Delhi, Jul 17 (PTI) Delhi recorded a warm day on Friday with the maximum temperature settling at 38.8 degrees Celsius, 3.6 notches above normal, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The IMD forecast a partly cloudy sky with the possibility of the development of thunder and lightning. During the evening and night, very light to light rainfall, thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, and gusty winds reaching 30-40 kmph are likely. Station-wise data showed the maximum temperature at Lodhi Road settled at 39.0 degrees Celsius, 5.0 notches above normal, followed by 38.5 degrees Celsius at Palam (3.3 notches above normal), 38.4 degrees Celsius at Ayanagar (3.1 notches above normal), and 37.4 degrees Celsius at the Ridge station (2.6 notches above normal). The weather office has issued a yellow alert for Saturday and Sunday, and forecast thunderstorms accompanied by rain over the weekend. The city recorded a minimum temperature of 31.0 degrees Celsius, 3.8 notches above normal. At Safdarjung, the city's base weather station, the minimum temperature was 31.0 degrees Celsius, 3.8 notches above normal. Palam recorded 29.1 degrees Celsius, 2.1 notches above normal, while Lodhi Road registered 30.1 degrees Celsius, 4.1 notches above normal. The Ridge station recorded a minimum of 25.6 degrees Celsius, 1.2 notches below normal, while Ayanagar logged 30.1 degrees Celsius, 3.6 notches above normal. Delhi's Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 176 in the "moderate" category on Friday evening. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (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". PTI MSJ MSJ MPL MPL MPL