Change in wind direction leads to rise in temperature in Delhi, no flight delays reported

The air quality is still in the “severe” category for Delhi. On Wednesday morning, the Air Quality Index (AQI) was at 415 at Safdarjung.

The easterlies are starting to show their effect on the temperature in and around Delhi. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Wednesday that under the influence of strong, warm, moist and low-level easterlies, the temperature over north and north west India has increased by 3-4 degrees Celsius.

Motorists ride in morning fog on the outskirts of Dwarka, near Delhi. (Vipin Kumar/HT Photo)

The Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) said there is moderate fog outside, but all flight operations are normal. However, 29 trains are running late in the Northern Railway region.

The air quality is still in the “severe” category for Delhi. On Wednesday morning, the Air Quality Index (AQI) was at 415 at Safdarjung, according to Skymet, an independent weather forecaster. The AQI on Tuesday was 387 in the “very poor” category, compared to 446 in the “severe” category on Monday.

The temperature in Delhi early on Wednesday was 3 degrees Celsius, according to Skymet and is expected to rise during the day.

A change in wind direction from Tuesday had started abating the severe cold spell impacting north India for nearly a fortnight in what was the second-coldest December recorded in the national capital since 1901.

According to India Meteorological Department (IMD), the wind direction changed from north-westerly (which brought cold winds from the Himalayas to the northern plains) to easterly (which brings moist air from West Bengal, Bihar, etc, originating in Bay of Bengal), leading to a rise in the minimum temperature on Tuesday morning.

The minimum temperature at Delhi’s Safdarjung observatory was 4.8 degrees Celsius, 2 degrees Celsius below normal on Tuesday morning, compared to 2.6 degrees Celsius on Monday morning. The maximum temperature at the Safdarjung observatory, which is the official marker for Delhi, on Tuesday was 14.7 degrees Celsius, five degrees warmer than the maximum temperature on Monday.

The IMD has, however, forecast “scattered to fairly widespread rainfall accompanied with thunderstorms, lightning and hail” in major parts of northwest and central India during January 1 and 4.