Delhi’s day temperature rises marginally, no relief from cold wave

IMD scientists said “cold day” conditions have abated but “cold wave” conditions are likely to continue over Delhi for a day or two.

After dealing with four consecutive days of a cold spell, Delhi’s maximum temperature increased to 19.8 degrees Celsius, 3 degrees above normal, on Friday. However, the cold wave continued as the minimum temperature was very low on Friday.

A man wrapped in a blanket walks on the old Yamuna bridge amid cold weather in New Delhi on Friday. (Amal KS/HT Photo)

Delhi’s Ayanagar station recorded 3.5 degrees Celsius, 5 degrees above normal, and Safdarjung station recorded 4.4 degrees Celsius, 3 degrees below normal.

On Thursday, the day temperature was 15.2 degrees Celsius, 7 degrees below normal—categorised as a “severe cold day” by India Meteorological Department (IMD).

IMD scientists said “cold day” conditions have abated but “cold wave” conditions are likely to continue over Delhi for a day or two.

“There is relief from cold day conditions mainly because there was a layer of uplifted fog over parts of Punjab and Haryana which has moved away so the surface is warming up due to sunlight. There is a slight drop in the chill factor of winds blowing from the western Himalayas. But because of clear skies, the cold wave is likely to continue over Delhi. There may be some relief from cold wave around December 21 when another western disturbance is expected,” said Kuldeep Srivastava, head, regional weather forecasting centre.

According to IMD a “cold day” or “severe cold day” is designated based on two parameters—a minimum temperature of under 10 degrees and maximum temperature of 4.5 degrees Celsius, or a temperature of 6.4 degrees Celsius below normal respectively. A cold wave occurs in plains when the minimum temperature is 10 degrees Celsius or below and/or is 4.5 degrees lesser than the season’s normal for two consecutive days. A cold wave is also declared when the minimum temperature is less than 4 degrees Celsius in the plains. Witnessing a cold day and cold wave together means the gap between day and night temperatures is lower than normal.

Minimum temperatures are likely to increase by 2-3 degrees Celsius in the next two or three days and maximum temperatures are likely to increase by 4-5 degrees Celsius in the next three days. “Cold wave to severe cold wave” conditions are likely over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jammu division, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh on December 19 and decrease thereafter. “Cold day to severe cold day” conditions are likely in some pockets over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, West Uttar Pradesh, Jammu division, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, East Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and West Madhya Pradesh during next 24 hours and decrease thereafter, IMD said in its Friday bulletin.

Dense fog is likely in some pockets over Himachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura during the next two days. Ground frost is also very likely in Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Gilgit-Baltistan, Muzaffarabad, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, West Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan during next 2 days. A strong surface wind with a speed of 10-20 kmph is likely to blow over northwest India for the next two days, according to IMD.

Delhi recorded “poor” air quality on Friday with an air quality index reading of 281. “Moisture may increase and there may be some clouding on Saturday because of which air pollution levels may increase marginally but they will hover around ‘poor’ to ‘very poor’ category. Further deterioration is expected in air quality from December 22 due to change in wind direction and speed,” said Vijay Soni, scientist, air quality division, IMD.