Chandigarh, June 12 -- A spell of rain and gusty winds brought much-needed relief from the heat in Chandigarh on Thursday, with the maximum temperature dropping sharply by 6 degrees Celsius in the last 24 hours. The city recorded a maximum temperature of 36deg Celsius, 6degC below Wednesday's reading, while the minimum temperature settled at 26.3degC, down by 2.4degC.

Chandigarh also received 0.3 mm of rainfall till 8.30 am, with the windy weather contributing significantly to the fall in temperature. While the day remained largely sunny after a light morning shower, weather conditions changed again in the evening as clouds gathered and strong winds swept across the city before a brief spell of rain.

The IMD continued its orange alert f...