Cold wave to persist in Delhi today, minimum temperature likely to be around 4°C

According to the Central Pollution Control Board, the hourly air quality index in Delhi stood at 332 around 7 am on Monday

Dense fog blanketed the national capital on Monday morning as the city grapples with cold wave conditions with the minimum temperature likely to drop to 4 degrees Celsius, according to the weather forecast by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Dense fog engulfs India Gate. (ANI Photo)

The maximum temperature on Monday is likely to stay around 19 degrees Celsius.

The minimum temperature on Sunday stood at 5.3 degrees Celsius, three notches below normal, while the maximum temperature was 16.2 degrees Celsius, five degrees below normal for this time of the season, and the lowest so far this year.

Meanwhile, Delhi’s air quality stayed in the very poor category on Monday morning. According to the Central Pollution Control Board, the hourly air quality index (AQI) was 332 at 7 am.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 and 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 and 200 ‘moderate’, 201 and 300 ‘poor’, 301 and 400 ‘very poor’, and 401 and 500 ‘severe’.

On Sunday, the government’s monitoring agency – System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research – said, “Fine particles (size < 2.5 micrometer) contribute 52% to PM10. For the next three days, surface wind speed (8 to 14 km/hr) and temperature (maximum temperature 27-26 degrees Celsius, minimum 8-7 degrees Celsius) are likely to cause the AQI to spike a little. Mixing layer height is likely to be 1 km, which will help dilute pollutants. The AQI is likely to remain within ‘moderate’ for the next three days as surface meteorological parameters tend to remain almost the same.”