The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Tuesday, 23 June issued a weather alert for Delhi-NCR, forecasting thunderstorms with lightning and gusty winds at isolated places through 25 June, even as the national capital continued to record poor air quality across multiple monitoring stations.

Scope of the Weather Warning

The alert is not confined to Delhi alone. The IMD has extended the warning to cover Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gangetic West Bengal, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. Separately, the department has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall over Assam, Meghalaya, Sub-Himalayan West Bengal, and Sikkim over the next two days. Heavy rainfall is also likely across Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Coastal Karnataka, Madhya Maharashtra, Goa, Odisha, Telangana, Kerala, and several northeastern states on Tuesday.

Delhi Temperatures and Tuesday Forecast

Temperatures in Delhi remained relatively moderate for late June. The city recorded a maximum of 38.4 degrees Celsius on Monday — marginally below the seasonal average and 0.5 degrees lower than the previous day, according to readings at Safdarjung, the city's base weather station. For Tuesday, the IMD has predicted partly cloudy skies with the minimum and maximum temperatures expected to hover around 25 degrees Celsius and 40 degrees Celsius respectively. The forecast of thunderstorms and gusty winds is expected to offer some relief from the prevailing heat, which typically pushes Delhi past the 40-degree mark through much of June.

Monsoon Advances Over Maharashtra

The southwest monsoon has regained momentum over Maharashtra after nearly a two-week lull. The IMD indicated the monsoon is likely to cover the entire state within the next few days. Mumbai witnessed widespread showers from the morning, with rainfall reported from Matunga, Senapati Bapat Road, and several other localities, bringing much-needed relief from sweltering conditions.

Air Quality Remains a Concern in Delhi

Despite the shifting weather pattern, Delhi's air quality stayed in the 'poor' category on Tuesday. Anand Vihar recorded the highest Air Quality Index (AQI) among monitored stations at 246. Other stations also reported elevated levels: IIT Delhi at 166, RK Puram at 165, Rohini at 163, Pusa at 173, Patparganj at 154, Sonia Vihar at 157, and Wazirpur at 185. Notably, poor air quality persisting alongside a thunderstorm forecast is unusual for this time of year, pointing to localised pollution build-up that rain may only partially address. Whether the anticipated showers will push AQI readings into the 'moderate' band remains to be seen as the week progresses.