Delhi shivers at 11°Celsius, braces for further dip in temperature

According to IMD, the minimum temperature is expected to dip further and oscillate between 9°C and 11°C on Monday. The maximum temperature is expected to be around 27-29°C till Tuesday and then go down further.

New Delhi: Delhi felt the winter chill on Saturday as the temperature dropped, aided by the northwesterly winds. Forecast suggests that the minimum temperature will dip further in the coming days.

A view of the Kartavya Path on Saturday morning (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

The minimum temperature on Saturday was recorded at 11 degrees Celsius (°C), which 3.3°C below the normal and down from Friday’s 12.7°C.

Meanwhile, the maximum temperature also saw a slight dip and was logged at 27.2 °C, 2.3 notches below the normal and a dip from 28.6°C recorded on Friday.

“Mainly clear skies have been persisting, which lead to lower minimum as heat from the earth’s surface is lost easily at night. Mainly clear skies will continue to persist for the next few days, with mist or a shallow fog in the early hours of the day,” said an official from the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

According to IMD forecasts, the minimum temperature is expected to dip further and oscillate between 9°C and 11°C on Monday. The maximum temperature is expected to be around 27-29°C till Tuesday and then go down further.

Mahesh Palawat, vice president at Skymet, said, “The chill is due to the effect of the northwesterly winds, coming from the mountains. The impact of the same is expected to continue in the Capital for at least next four to five days.”

Meanwhile, the city’s air quality deteriorated further and the 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) on Saturday was recorded at 361 (very poor) at 4pm, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). This was a several point deterioration from Friday’s average AQI of 322, recorded at the same time.

Forecasts by the Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS) suggest that the air quality is expected to remain in the “very poor” zone for the next few days.

“The air quality is likely to be in the ‘very poor’ category from Sunday to Tuesday. The outlook for the subsequent six days is that the air quality is likely to be in the very poor category,” said the AQEWS bulletin on Saturday evening.