Overnight rains and cloudy conditions on Saturday night kept temperatures in Delhi below the seasonal average, with the minimum temperature second-lowest for September since 2001, as per data by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The rain also brought a sharp improvement in the air quality.

The minimum temperature was recorded at 21°C, 2.9 degrees below normal, and only marginal higher than 20.8°C logged on September 6, 2008. This was the lowest September minimum after 2000, when the minimum was logged at 20.6 on September 29.

Meanwhile, Delhi’s 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) stood at 53 — “satisfactory” category — on Sunday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). It was the second-lowest AQI recorded in the Capital this year, after 48 on July 9.

The city received a few spells of rain from Saturday evening into the early hours of Sunday. Safdarjung recorded 4.9mm of rain in the 24 hours till 8.30am, while the Ridge received 6.8mm, Lodi Road 5.2mm, Palam 3.7mm and Ayanagar 4mm. The IMD’s three-hourly observations show that the heaviest spell at Safdarjung was 3.2mm between 8.30pm and 11.30pm on Saturday, followed by 0.9mm between 11.30pm and 2.30am.

The maximum temperature at Safdarjung was 30.6°C, which was 3.7 degrees below normal. The IMD said maximum temperatures across Delhi had fallen by 3-4°C and minimum temperatures by 1-2°C over the preceding 24 hours. “The minimum temperatures are markedly below normal at isolated places,” the weather department said in its Sunday bulletin.