Delhi recorded its second-lowest minimum temperature for September in 18 years on Sunday, with the temperature at Safdarjung falling to 21 degrees Celsius as rain across northern and central India brought unusually cool conditions to the capital.
The minimum temperature was three notches below normal and followed a reading of 23.2 degrees Celsius on Saturday. The India Meteorological Department said cool north and north-easterly winds, along with heavy rain and storms in adjoining states, had contributed to the early winter-like mornings across Delhi.
The 21 degrees Celsius reading at Safdarjung was the second-lowest minimum temperature recorded in September since 2001, according to IMD weather scientist Krishna Mishra. The lowest was 20.8 degrees Celsius on September 6, 2008, while the third-lowest was 21.1 degrees Celsius on September 19, 2024.
Temperatures varied significantly across the city’s monitoring stations. The Ridge recorded a minimum of 16.8 degrees Celsius, Palam recorded 19.2 degrees Celsius and Ayanagar recorded 21.2 degrees Celsius. At Safdarjung, the maximum temperature was 30.6 degrees Celsius, four notches below normal, compared with 29.2 degrees Celsius a day earlier.
The cooler weather also coincided with a sharp improvement in Delhi’s air quality. The city’s 4pm Air Quality Index reading on Sunday was 53, within the ‘satisfactory’ category and the best recorded since July 9, when the AQI stood at 48. Several parts of the capital recorded air quality in the ‘good’ category.
The IMD attributed the temperature drop to a large-scale weather system that produced very heavy to extremely heavy rainfall across parts of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, eastern Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Mishra said the system was associated with a deep depression over the west-central Bay of Bengal and had brought rainfall exceeding 30 centimetres in several parts of Uttar Pradesh.
Minimum temperatures in Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and eastern Madhya Pradesh were running as much as four degrees below normal, according to the IMD. Maximum temperatures were up to 10 degrees below normal in parts of Uttar Pradesh, five to seven degrees below normal in parts of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, and seven to eight degrees below normal in parts of Uttarakhand.
Delhi is expected to remain relatively cool on Monday, with the minimum temperature forecast at 20-22 degrees Celsius and the maximum at 31-33 degrees Celsius. However, the IMD expects temperatures to gradually rise over the next few days as weather conditions turn drier.
No rainfall is expected in Delhi from Monday onwards. The city’s monsoon withdrawal was recorded on September 23, two days ahead of its normal date. Safdarjung recorded 728.6 millimetres of rainfall during the monsoon season, which was 16% above the average of 629.7 millimetres. The city also received 5 millimetres of post-monsoon rainfall on Saturday as the depression and a western disturbance supplied additional moisture. Last year, Delhi recorded 41% surplus rainfall.
