New Delhi: Heavy rain drenched parts of the national capital on Thursday morning, prompting the weather office to issue an orange alert forecasting moderate to heavy rain accompanied by thunderstorms through the day.

The downpour brought much-needed relief from the sultry weather.

Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 26.6 degrees Celsius, 1.3 notches below the season’s average, according to the India Meteorological Department.

The maximum temperature is likely to settle around 32 degrees Celsius.

The city’s air quality was recorded in the “satisfactory” category at 9 am, with an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 84, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed.

According to the CPCB, an AQI between zero and 50 is considered “good”, 51 to 100 “satisfactory”, 101 to 200 “moderate”, 201 to 300 “poor”, 301 to 400 “very poor”, and 401 to 500 “severe”.