Delhi braces for severe chill

Delhi faces severe chill with a yellow alert for dense fog and "cold day" conditions, as temperatures drop to 12-15°C over the next days.

New Delhi

According to IMD, “cold day” conditions were recorded in isolated pockets of the city, as foggy conditions restricted visibility to 250 metres in the morning hours. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

Delhi is likely to be in the grip of severe chill over the next few days, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issuing a yellow alert until Thursday, predicting dense to very dense fog and chances of “cold day” conditions, as a combination of upper-level fog and icy-cold northwesterlies left the city shivering on Tuesday.

According to IMD, “cold day” conditions were recorded in isolated pockets of the city, as foggy conditions restricted visibility to 250 metres in the morning hours. Persistent shallow fog and haze in the upper-levels during the day meant many parts of the city did not see sunshine on the day. Meteorological experts said the cold will intensify across northern India until January 15, sweeping the plains as a combination of extremely low maximum and minimum temperatures is observed.

Navdeep Dahiya, an amateur weatherman, said with no obstruction in the form of a western disturbance expected until January 15, similar conditions should prevail, with single-digit maximum temperatures expected in Punjab, Haryana, northwest Rajasthan and parts of Uttar Pradesh.

“For Delhi, we can expect the maximum to fall and be in the range of 12-15°C at Safdarjung during the next 9-10 days or so, and it may be between 10-14°C at Palam. The minimum may not fall like 2019, but it should still fall to a range between 3-4°C,” Dahiya said, stating early morning fog will persist, with this rising to the mid-and-upper levels during the day.

On Tuesday, the Safdarjung weather station, representative of Delhi’s weather, logged a maximum temperature of 15.7°C, three degrees below normal. The lowest maximum in the city was 13°C, recorded at Palam; it was six degrees below normal.

“Maximum temperatures have been observed in the range of 13-16°C with cold day conditions over Delhi at Palam and Lodhi Road). It is likely to continue on Wednesday,” said IMD scientist Krishna Mishra.

The IMD classifies it as a “cold day” when the minimum temperature is below 10°C and the departure of maximum temperature from normal is 4.5°C or more. It is a “severe cold day” when the maximum is 6.5°C or more lower than normal.

The lowest maximum this season was 14.2°C, recorded on December 31, a six-year low. On December 30, 2019, the maximum temperature dropped to 9.4°C, making it the coldest December day in 119 years.

To be sure, the IMD had not forecast chances of cold day conditions on Tuesday.

Dahiya said a combination of fog, alongside icy-cold northwesterly winds, made it feel extremely cold during the day. “Despite fog, which keeps minimum high, these icy-cold winds will not only keep maximum low, but also gradually bring the minimum lower,” he said.

The minimum meanwhile stood at 7.6°C on Tuesday -- a degree above normal. It was 6.6°C on Monday, which was normal. Cold northwesterly winds had so far been leading to a sustained drop in the minimum temperature, with the wind speed dipping comparatively on Tuesday.

The minimum is forecast to stay between 6 and 8°C on Wednesday and between 5 and 7°C on Friday. The maximum is expected to be between 15-17°C on Wednesday and 16-18°C on Thursday.

Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) deteriorated to the “very poor” range on the day, at 310 (“very poor”) on Tuesday, up from a reading of 244 (poor) recorded the day before.

In its forecast for Delhi, the Air Quality Early Warning System (EWS) said the AQI is unlikely to improve in the short term. “Delhi’s air quality is likely to be in the ‘very poor’ category from January 7 till 9. The outlook for the subsequent six days, from January 10, shows the air quality is likely to stay in the ‘very poor’ category,” the EWS said in its daily forecast.