The maximum temperature in this month has been below 40 degrees so far.

Delhi's maximum temperature is expected to rise gradually, but there is no possibility of a heatwave for the next four to five days. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) gave this information. The Safdarjung Observatory, the national capital's premier weather station, recorded a minimum temperature of 25.2 degrees Celsius, two notches below the season's average, while the maximum temperature settled at 38.4 degrees Celsius, two notches below the season's average.

Delhi has not been as hot as it is in early June due to frequent rains due to a series of western disturbances. The maximum temperature in this month has been below 40 degrees so far. According to the IMD, the Safdarjung Observatory has not recorded heatwave conditions so far this year and this is the first time since 2014.

Meteorologists have attributed the excess rainfall and below-normal temperatures in this pre-monsoon season (March to May) to a higher-than-normal western disturbance. This weather system originates in the Mediterranean region and causes unseasonal rains in northwest India. However, this does not mean that the heat wave will not last further.

The onset of monsoon over Kerala has already been delayed and meteorologists have predicted slow progress in the monsoon beyond the southern peninsula due to Cyclone Biparjoy. Temperatures are likely to remain above normal in many parts of the country, including the national capital.

The IMD had last month forecast a normal or below normal monsoon over northwest India, which means more dry and warm days. According to the IMD, Delhi recorded a very low month of May for the first time in 36 years. This time, due to more rains, the maximum temperature came down to an average of 36.8 degrees Celsius.

The weather station had recorded 13 days of heatwave conditions in the pre-monsoon season last year between April 2021 and May 2020. There was only one day of heat stroke during this period in 2019, four days in <> and one day in <>.

A heatwave occurs when the maximum temperature at a weather station reaches at least 40 degrees Celsius in the plains, 37 degrees in coastal areas and 30 degrees in mountainous areas, and is at least 4.5 degrees above normal.