Just when February was beginning to give summer vibes in Calcutta, a cyclonic circulation has led to overcast conditions, mild showers and a drop in temperature.

Tuesday’s maximum temperature was 22.6 degrees, nine notches below normal. Monday’s maximum was 27.1 degrees.

The last time this month the Met office recorded a lower maximum temperature was February 8, when the reading was 20.5.

Tuesday’s minimum was 18.8 degrees, a notch below normal.

The sky has been overcast since Monday and the clouds thickened on Tuesday.

The Met office recorded a paltry 0.2mm of rain in Alipore on Monday. Over 24 hours till 8.30pm on Tuesday, the Met office recorded 3.2mm of rain

“The cloud cover ensured that the sun only made the occasional appearance. As a result, the day temperature was on the lower side and that led to a dip in the maximum temperature,” a Met department official said.

“A cyclonic circulation is behind the change in weather. The system was over eastern Uttar Pradesh on Monday and over southern Bihar on Tuesday. It has lost some steam while moving towards north Bengal,” said G.K. Das, director, India Meteorological Department, Calcutta.

The sky is likely to remain cloudy for the better part of Wednesday. The Met office has also forecast light rain for Wednesday.

“The sky is expected to clear from Wednesday evening. The maximum temperature could remain under 30 degrees for the next couple of days,” said a Met official.