Delhi: Cold wave to return for three days, rain expected next week

The night temperatures in most parts of north-west India will likely fall by about 2 degrees Celsius, according to predictions. In Delhi, the minimum temperature is projected to be 5 degrees Celsius.

Delhi and other parts of north India will likely experience cold wave conditions over the next three days, with the night temperature expected to drop to 4 degrees Celsius by Monday, the India Meteorological Department said on Sunday.

Rain and thundershowers lashed parts of Delhi-NCR on January 24.(HT File Photo)

The minimum temperature dropped to six degrees Celsius in the national capital on Saturday, three notches below the season’s average. The maximum temperature settled at 19.2 degrees Celsius, which was also 3 degrees below average.

“The western disturbance, which caused rain in Delhi and other parts of northwest India recently, has moved eastward. The winds are now northerly or north-westerly. They are coming from colder regions in the hills, which have received widespread snowfall. This is why cold wave conditions will prevail over the northern plains including Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi in the next 3-4 days,” said M Mohapatra, director general of meteorology at IMD.  

The night temperatures in most parts of north-west India will likely fall by about 2 degrees Celsius, according to predictions. In Delhi, the minimum temperature is projected to be 5 degrees Celsius. The temperature is also set to drop in Gurugram, which had the minimum temperature of 7.2 degrees Celsius on Saturday, according to IMD.

The maximum temperature in Delhi could rise by a degree or two by mid-week. “We are expecting near cold wave conditions in some parts of Delhi on Sunday and a cold wave on Monday and Tuesday. The minimum temperature is expected to drop to 4 degrees Celsius by Monday,” said a senior official of the IMD. Skymet Weather Services has also predicted a similar weather pattern over the north-west plains.

The weather department declares a cold wave if the temperature drops to 4 degrees Celsius or below and such a situation continues for at least two days.

“There has been heavy snowfall in the Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. The northwesterly winds are bringing in the chill resulting in drop in night temperature,” said the official.

The night chill, however, is not expected to last long, as the minimum temperature is expected to shoot up in the second half of next week. A fresh western disturbance is likely to cause widespread rain and snow over western Himalayan region and thundershowers over some parts in the plains of northwest and central India between January 30 and February 2, according to the IMD’s weather bulletin.

“As the sky is expected to turn cloudy, the night temperature could rise to 9 degrees Celsius by January 31,” the official said.