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At 9.4°C, Jan 21 was coldest day in Chandigarh in 11 years
Chandigarh’s maximum temperature plunged to 8.9 degrees below normal; respite from biting cold unlikely in coming days
After a foggy night, the city experienced a frigid Sunday with the maximum temperature plummeting to 9.4°C, lowest in 11 years.
Dropping from 14.1°C on Saturday, Sunday’s maximum temperature was lowest since 6.1°C on January 8, 2013, which remains the coldest day in 40 years.
Interestingly, the day temperature on Sunday, at 9.4°C, was lower than the night temperature on Saturday, at 9.7°C.
As per the India Meteorological Department (IMD), respite from the numbing cold is unlikely in the coming days.
Second ‘severe cold day’ of season
The maximum temperature was a biting 8.9 degrees below normal, which is defined as a “severe cold day” as per IMD. It is declared when the minimum temperature falls below 10°C and the maximum temperature drops over 6.5 degrees below normal.
Before this, there has been only one severe cold day this season on December 31, when the maximum temperature was 12.4°C — 7.4 degrees below normal.
The minimum temperature also fell from 9.7°C on Saturday to 5.2°C on Sunday, 2.2 degrees below normal.
Fog causing temperature drop: IMD
Fog was behind the drop in temperature, said IMD Chandigarh director AK Singh.
“While visibility improved by Sunday afternoon, a low-level layer of fog in the sky kept the sun from appearing. We have extended our forecast for cold days and dense fog for the next few days, and relief remains unlikely for now,” he shared.
Visibility dropped to 70 metres at 5.30 am and even by 8.30 am, it improved only to 80 metres, both of which are regarded as “dense fog” (50 to 200 metres), as per IMD.
Chandigarh coldest in region
At 9.4°C, Chandigarh was colder than all stations of Haryana and even colder than all stations of Punjab, except Ballowal Saunkhri in SBS Nagar (8.5°C) and Ropar (9.1°C).
In Punjab, Amritsar recorded a tad higher maximum temperature of 9.5°C, followed by Ferozepur (10.1°C), Faridkot (10.5°C), Patiala (10.7°C), Ludhiana (12.4°C) and Pathankot (11.2°C).
Haryana’s cities, including Ambala, Rohtak, Bhiwani, Sirsa and Jhajjar, logged maximum temperatures of 10.3°C, 11.4°C, 11.5°C , 11°C and 12.1°C, respectively.
In fact, Chandigarh’s maximum temperature was even lower than some adjoining hill stations, with Shimla at 12.1°C, Dharamshala at 17°C and Dalhousie at 9.9°C. Even in Kashmir, Srinagar (13°C), Kupwara (13.3°C) and Anantnag (12.4°C) were far warmer than Chandigarh.
Orange alert for Chandigarh
An orange alert for dense fog and cold day to severe cold day conditions will continue on Monday, while a red alert has been sounded in some adjoining districts like Ambala, Patiala and Ludhiana.
Orange is the second highest of the four-colour warning system used by IMD, asking people to stay alert and be prepared.
Air quality remains poor
A day after the Air Quality Index (AQI) of the city crossed 400 and turned “severe”, it was back in the “poor” bracket (201-300).
The average AQI at 8 pm was 262 at the Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Station (CAAQMS) and 232 at the Sector 25 CAAQMS, while there was insufficient data for calculating AQI at the Sector 53 CAAQMS.
Even at the Haryana State Pollution Control Board station in Sector 6, Panchkula, AQI was 251. AQI in poor bracket can cause breathing discomfort to most people on prolonged exposure.
On Saturday, the average AQI at 7 pm had reached 401 at the CAAQMS in Sector 53, categorised as “severe” (401-500). Additionally, the AQI at the Sector 22 CAAQMS was 399, and 321 at the Sector 25 CAAQMS, both classified as “very poor” (301-400).
Morning Shatabdi delayed by 46 minutes
Amid the hazy weather conditions, the 6.53 am Kalka-New Delhi Shatabdi Express reached the national capital 46 minutes late. The New Delhi-Kalka Shatabdi Express also arrived in Chandigarh 48 minutes late.
The morning Vande Bharat Express from New Delhi to Chandigarh was delayed by 23 minutes.
Even air passengers suffered at Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, as five flights were cancelled and 10 were delayed.
Among the cancelled flights, three were to depart for Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru; two were to arrive from Pune and Jaipur.
Meanwhile, three departure flights to Delhi (IndiGo 6E-2177), Mumbai (IndiGo 6E-5261) and Hyderabad (IndiGo 6E-867) have been cancelled in advance for Monday.
