Rain falls, power demand soars on hottest day of yr

Parts of Delhi saw light rain on Friday evening, offering momentary respite even as the city recorded its hottest day of the year so far.

- Aheli Das

NEW DELHI: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a yellow alert for Saturday, forecasting continued rain and a gradual dip in temperatures over the next few days.

The maximum temperature rose to 42.3°C on Friday—1.9°C above normal and the highest recorded this year, surpassing the previous peak of 42.1°C on April 26. Thursday's maximum was 40.6°C.

The minimum temperature was 26.2°C, slightly below normal and marginally higher than Thursday's 25.4°C.

According to the IMD, the maximum temperature is expected to remain around 41-43°C on Saturday, falling to 39-41°C by Monday and further to 37-39°C by Tuesday. The minimum temperature is likely to hover around 27-29°C over the weekend.

Krishna Mishra, a scientist at IMD, attributed the forecast dip in temperature to increased moisture from the Arabian Sea.