Delhi bakes under scorching heat: Feels-like temperature soars to dangerous 53.5°C, humidity worsens conditions

Delhi heat index: Delhi residents endured another exhausting day on Tuesday as soaring humidity pushed the city's "feels like" temperature to an uncomfortable 53.5 degrees Celsius by 5.30 pm. Although the conditions were extremely harsh, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) clarified that Delhi did not meet the official criteria required for declaring a heatwave.

At Safdarjung, the city's primary weather station, the maximum temperature reached 40.5 degrees Celsius, around three degrees above the seasonal average. Other parts of the capital also witnessed elevated temperatures, with Palam recording 41 degrees Celsius, Lodhi Road 40.1 degrees Celsius, and Ayanagar 40.1 degrees Celsius.

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Night-time conditions also offered little relief. Safdarjung and Palam reported minimum temperatures of 30.2 degrees Celsius, while Lodhi Road and Ayanagar recorded even warmer nights at 31.2 degrees Celsius. Ridge logged a minimum of 29.3 degrees Celsius.

Light rainfall activity remained negligible across the city. Only trace amounts of rain were reported at a few weather stations during the morning and afternoon, while several locations received no measurable rainfall throughout the day.

Despite the uncomfortable weather, the IMD stated that Delhi could not be officially classified as being under a heatwave. According to the weather agency, the prescribed conditions were fulfilled at only one monitoring station within the Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi region. IMD guidelines require at least two stations in the subdivision to satisfy the heatwave criteria before such a declaration can be made.

Weather experts attribute the intense conditions to a combination of dry winds arriving from Pakistan and moisture-laden southwesterly winds from the Arabian Sea. The interaction between these contrasting air masses leads to cloud formation later in the day, but the available moisture remains insufficient to trigger widespread rainfall.

Since clouds generally develop during the late afternoon, after peak daytime heating has already occurred, temperatures continue to climb during the day. The added moisture in the atmosphere further increases discomfort, making the air feel significantly hotter than the actual recorded temperature.

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Forecasters say that until stronger rainfall activity sets in, Delhi is likely to continue experiencing hot, humid conditions with high heat index values despite the absence of an officially declared heatwave.