At 41.2 mm, Delhi records highest single-day Dec rainfall in 101 years

Delhi witnessed 41.2 mm of rainfall in the past 24 hours until 8:30 am on Saturday, marking the highest single-day December rainfall in 101 years, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The IMD reported that the capital last recorded its highest-ever December rainfall on a single day on December 3, 1923, at 75.7 mm.

This recent downpour also made December 2024 the fifth-wettest December in terms of monthly rainfall since records began in 1901, a weather department official stated.

“The 24-hour cumulative rainfall ending at 8:30 am today is the second-highest since 1901 at Safdarjung. The monthly rainfall is the fifth-highest. The 24-hour cumulative rainfall refers to the rainfall during the past 24 hours, ending at 8:30 am IST on the given date,” the IMD official elaborated.

An active western disturbance combined with easterly winds has been responsible for light to moderate rainfall and thunderstorms across Northwest and Central India, including Delhi-NCR, the IMD explained.

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On Saturday, the minimum temperature in Delhi was recorded at 12.7 degrees Celsius, six degrees above the season’s average. On Sunday, the minimum temperature was slightly lower at 13 degrees Celsius, still six notches above the average. The maximum temperature is expected to reach 16 degrees Celsius, with mostly clear skies predicted for the day.

Delhi’s air quality deteriorated to the ‘poor’ category on Sunday morning, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) reaching 230 at 9 am. On Saturday, the 24-hour AQI was in the ‘moderate’ category at 135 as of 4 pm.

The AQI categories are as follows: ‘good’ (0-50), ‘satisfactory’ (51-100), ‘moderate’ (101-200), ‘poor’ (201-300), ‘very poor’ (301-400), and ‘severe’ (401-500).

Meanwhile, humidity levels in the city stood at 95 per cent at 8:30 am on Sunday.

(With inputs from PTI)