The India Meteorological Department issued a “yellow” alert for Delhi on Tuesday as the capital braces for severe weather conditions. Maximum daytime temperatures are expected to reach a scorching 44°C, triggering public health warnings and emergency cooling measures across the region.
According to Mahesh Palawat at Skymet Weather, this extreme thermal spike is driven by the complete absence of active western disturbances. Without these weather systems, dry, scorching northwesterly winds blowing in from central Pakistan and Rajasthan are currently trapping heat over the National Capital Region.
Tuesday began with a minimum temperature of 28.2°C at the Safdarjung base station, sitting 1.7 notches above normal. Other monitoring stations reported similarly elevated morning conditions, with Palam hitting 28.1°C and Lodhi Road reaching 27.0°C. The IMD advised residents to “be updated” on the shifting weather, confirming the official yellow alert status for Tuesday morning.
This warning follows an intense build-up of heat. Monday officially marked the hottest day of the season so far. The base Safdarjung observatory hit a peak of 43.4°C, while the Ridge monitoring station recorded 44.6°C yesterday.
In response to the brutal conditions, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority and Civil Defence volunteers established ‘Cooling Zones’ across crowded transit hubs to distribute oral rehydration solution packets and cold drinking water. Air quality remains somewhat stable despite the heat, with the Central Pollution Control Board logging a Moderate Air Quality Index of 189 at 9:00 a.m. local time. The broader climatic pressure driving this heat aligns with the super El Niño warning that forecasters have been tracking this season.
How the IMD Classifies the 40°C Heatwave Threshold
A heatwave is not declared purely based on human discomfort. The IMD relies on a strict meteorological formula to trigger municipal emergency responses. A heatwave is officially confirmed when a region’s maximum temperature crosses 40°C and simultaneously sits at least 4.5°C above the seasonal normal. Alternatively, if the absolute temperature hits 45°C, the classification is applied automatically regardless of the normal deviation.
Prior to this current intense spell, Safdarjung had only recorded one official heatwave day earlier this season on April 25, 2026, when the maximum temperature reached 42.8°C. The current stretch of dangerous heat is sustained by the continuous flow of dry winds from the west and northwest, a pattern verified according to Skymet Weather.