Delhi logs coldest March day in six years, skies to remain cloudy in coming days

DElhi on fri witnessed illumine rain down and mild thunderstorms on with puffy winds, with the minimum temperature settling at 16 degrees Celsius, 0.5 degrees below normal.The Capital logged its coldest March day in six years following the sharp dip in temperature, with the air quality index also falling to ‘satisfactory’, seeings its lowest reading in five months, PTI news agency reported.The national capital will continue to experience cloudy skies for the coming days as well. According to the India Meteorological Department's forecast for the next seven days, Delhi will see partly cloudy skies, with a possibility of very light rain accompanied by thunderstorm and lightning at the start of next week. The rain, which brought back a winter-like chill to the capital, came after a brief period of rising temperatures before the summer season sets in.Delhi sees wettest March, coldest March day, cleanest air in five monthsThe rainfall has made this month Delhi's wettest March in three years, with an average rainfall of 9.4 mm. The Capital also experienced its coldest March day since February 8, 2020. The maximum temperature on Friday settled at 21.7 degrees Celsius at Safdarjung, 9.6 degrees below normal.The air quality also saw a marked improvement, with the AQI reading recorded at 93 in the ‘satisfactory’ category. The last time the Capital recorded a ‘satisfactory’ AQI reading was on October 9, 2025. The air quality is likely to be in the 'moderate' category from Saturday to March 23, PTI reported citing the Air Quality Early Warning System.The IMD had issued a yellow alert for Friday, warning of more rain and a further drop in temperature to around 23 to 25°C. On Thursday, the minimum temperature had fallen below 30°C for the first time in nearly a month, settling at 26.8°C.According to the IMD’s seven-day outlook, the maximum temperature is likely to rise gradually after Friday, reaching 32-34°C by March 25.Rain, snowfall likely across Himalayan region, Northeast IndiaThe weather department in its bulletin said rainfall or snowfall was likely over isolated places in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. It said that light to moderate rains, along with thunderstorms, would take place in parts of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.Also Read | 'Insane cover': What's making Delhi unusually cold? It is a '1,000-km' rain bandScattered to fairly widespread light to moderate rainfall is also likely over Northeast India, including Manipur, Assam, Mizoram and Tripura on Friday. West Bengal, Sikkim will also witness light to moderate rains, while some places in Jharkhand and Odisha night experience thundersquall, IMD stated.In South India, light to moderate rainfall is likely over Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam, Rayalseema and Telangana.