Delhi logs warmest January day in 4 years

The Capital is likely to see a dip in its maximum temperature again from Tuesday onwards, with India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasting cloudy skies and light rain in the morning and evening.

The Capital saw a fairly warm Monday, with a combination of clear skies and warm easterly winds raising Delhi’s maximum temperature to 25.9 degrees Celsius (°C) – 1.9 degrees higher than Sunday’s maximum and five notches above normal -- to log the warmest January day in four years.

Met officials say cold wave conditions are unlikely over Delhi till at least January 29 now, with easterly winds to be predominant during the next six days. (Raj K Raj/HT Photo)

The last time Delhi recorded a warmer January day was in 2019, at 28.7°C (January 21).

The Capital is likely to see a dip in its maximum temperature again from Tuesday onwards, with India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasting cloudy skies and light rain in the morning and evening, while isolated parts may receive a drizzle both on Wednesday and Thursday.

“Delhi is beginning to see the impact of the active western disturbance influencing north India, with warm easterly winds blowing since the morning. A combination of clear skies, which allows the surface to heat up faster, aided by warmer easterly winds led to the maximum rising this high,” said Kuldeep Srivastava, scientist at IMD, stating a dip in maximum is now expected, with cloudy skies returning to Delhi.

“During this spell, while not much rain is expected over Delhi, the peak activity will occur on Tuesday when light rain is likely. Cloudy skies will persist on Wednesday and Thursday too, which will lead to the maximum dipping by 2-3 degrees,” he added.

The last time Delhi recorded a higher maximum temperature was on December 13, 2022, at 26.8°C. For January, such a high is rare, as the long-period average shows the maximum temperature varies between 19.4°C and 22.4°C through the month. In January last year, the highest maximum was 23.2°C (January 5). In January 2021, the highest maximum was 22.6°C (January 5) and in 2020, the highest maximum for January was 23.5°C (January 4).

Delhi’s maximum is forecast to be around 24°C on Tuesday, while it will hover around the 22-degree mark on Wednesday and Thursday.

In terms of the minimum temperature, Delhi witnessed a low of 7.6°C, which is around normal for this time of the season, a drop of 0.6 degrees from Sunday. Delhi’s minimum for the next three days will hover between 9°C and 10°C, according to the IMD forecast.

Met officials say cold wave conditions are unlikely over Delhi till at least January 29 now, with easterly winds to be predominant during the next six days.

The increase in wind speed also led to an improvement in Delhi’s air quality on Monday, with the air quality index (AQI) dropping down to the ‘very poor’ category from Sunday’s ‘severe’. Delhi recorded an AQI reading of 335 according to the Central Pollution Control Board’s daily national bulletin, a dip of 72 points as compared to the reading of 407 on Sunday. The air quality is forecast to remain ‘very poor’ in the next two days.

Forecasts by the Early Warning System (EWS) for Delhi, used by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) in NCR, shows Delhi’s AQI could touch ‘poor’ by Thursday.

“Delhi’s air quality is likely to deteriorate slightly but will remain in the ‘very poor’ category on Tuesday. The air quality is likely to improve after that but it will remain ‘very poor’ on Wednesday. On Thursday, it will improve further and reach the ‘poor’ category,” said EWS.