After an unusually chilly first half of the month, nights have become warm, with Delhi’s minimum temperature rising sharply in the last 24 hours.

Delhi’s minimum stood at 18 degrees Celsius (°C) on Friday – one degree above normal and the highest so far this year. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted that the minimum will now hover between 17 and 18°C till Holi, which will be marked on Monday, and the maximum will also rise by 1-2°C.

Delhi’s maximum temperature was 32.6°C on Friday, which was one degree above normal. IMD’s forecasts showed that the maximum could touch 34°C by Saturday and possibly reach 35°C on the day of Holi.

“We are seeing strong surface winds, with the wind direction being mainly easterly. We also have clear skies and the remaining winter chill has now vanished. Both maximum and minimum will only rise further till the end of the month now,” said an IMD official.

The IMD has forecast strong surface winds of 25-30 km/hour to continue till Monday.

“Holi will be warm and sunny, with the maximum likely to be around 35°C and the minimum around 18°C. No active weather system is expected in the next seven days,” said the official, adding that the minimum could cross 20°C by March 27.

The highest maximum recorded so far this year was 33.6°C on March 20. The highest minimum before Friday was 16.4°C, which was recorded on Thursday.

In terms of air quality, Delhi’s air remained “moderate”, but improved marginally in the last 24 hours. The 24-hour air quality index stood at 166 (moderate) at 4 pm on Friday and was 170 (moderate) at the same time on Thursday.