After days of expecting thunderstorms, lightning and light rain, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said that skies over Pune and its surrounding areas are expected to clear from Saturday onwards, with no rainfall likely. With cloud cover receding, temperatures are set to rise by one to two degrees Celsius from Saturday, and the city must brace for hotter days and nights.

The light rain experienced in parts of the city was due to a trough in the upper-level westerlies and the interaction of moisture-laden winds from the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. The IMD had issued warnings for several districts in Madhya Maharashtra, Vidarbha, Konkan and Marathwada for thunderstorms, lightning, rain and even hailstorms.

“The moisture has moved eastward, so the amount of relative humidity has reduced significantly. The trough in upper level westerlies has also moved eastward. As a result, the conditions are not favourable for thunderstorms or rainfall,” said SD Sanap, Scientist at the IMD Pune.

On Friday, residents across Pune experienced a shift in temperature. Shivajinagar and Pashan stations recorded a minimum temperature of around 17°C, lower than the 19°C recorded the previous day. Lohegaon recorded around 20°C on Friday morning, similar to the previous day. Chinchwad recorded 20.3°C, down from 22°C a day earlier. At NDA, there was a sharp drop in the minimum temperature, from 18.8°C on Thursday to 15.6°C on Friday.

The weather office has forecast that the minimum temperature in Shivajinagar and Pashan will be around 17°C on Saturday, rising steadily to 20°C by Wednesday. Areas such as Lohegaon, Chinchwad, Magarpatta and Koregaon Park are expected to feel the brunt of the heat, with minimum temperatures around 20°C on Saturday, increasing to 21–22°C over the next five days.

The Shivajinagar station recorded a maximum temperature of 34°C on Friday, which is expected to rise gradually each day to touch 38°C by Thursday — the highest forecast maximum for the city in the coming days.