Mercury dips to 3.6°C in parts of Delhi amid isolated cold wave conditions

An Average Air Quality Index (AQI) of 209 was recorded at 8am on Monday, compared to 153 at 4pm on Sunday, Delhi’s lowest in January in four years

Published on: Jan 26, 2026, 09:45:26 IST

By Jasjeev Gandhiok

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The mercury dipped to 3.6°C in parts of Delhi on Monday amid isolated cold wave conditions, even as the air quality deteriorated to the “poor” category following a rare, two-day streak of “moderate” pollution levels in January. An Average Air Quality Index (AQI) of 209 was recorded at 8am on Monday, compared to 153 at 4pm on Sunday, Delhi’s lowest in January in four years.

Clear skies and sustained icy-cold northwesterly winds led to a further drop in temperature. (HT PHOTO)

Clear skies and sustained icy-cold northwesterly winds over the couple of days led to a further drop in temperature. A fresh western disturbance is expected to raise the mercury again and bring light showers on Tuesday.

A minimum temperature of 4.2°C, four degrees below normal, was recorded at Safdarjung, Delhi’s representative weather observatory, compared to 6.6°C on Sunday and 7.6°C on Saturday. Ayanagar observatory in southwest Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 3.6°C, 5.4°C below normal. The mercury dipped to 5.3°C at north Delhi’s Ridge observatory, five notches below the normal.

A cold wave is when the minimum temperature is below 10°C and at least 4.5°C below normal, or when the mercury drops to 4°C or lower. At least two stations met this criterion on Monday.

A yellow alert has been issued for Tuesday for one to two spells of light rain during the day, with gusty winds of up to 40 km per hour, which should again keep Delhi’s air quality in check.

“When a western disturbance approaches, it causes a change in wind direction to warmer easterly winds. Overcast skies also lead to a rise in minimum temperature and a dip in maximum temperature,” said private forecaster Skymet Weather vice president Mahesh Palawat. He added that a fresh snowfall is again expected in the Himalayas and a dip in minimum temperature is likely across the plains from January 29.

The Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi said the AQI is likely to return to the “moderate” range by Wednesday. The AQI will oscillate between “moderate” and “poor” between January 29 and February 3.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jasjeev Gandhiok
Jasjeev Gandhiok is an Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times, where he covers environment, climate change, the clean energy transition and wildlife at the National Bureau. Gandhiok has over a decade of experience in journalism and is based in Delhi. He has reported extensively on Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR). This includes the region's air pollution woes, a polluted Yamuna and on urban wildlife still thriving in the region. He joined HT in October 2021. Prior to that, he had five-year stint at The Times of India in Delhi, where he also covered Delhi, with a focus on environment and wildlife. Gandhiok has covered some recent events around the Capital too, ranging from the farmers' protests, the northeast Delhi riots and the CAA-NRC protests, reporting from the ground on all of these. He also travels across the country to report on how environment and climate change impact everyday life, while also writing on endangered species. His reports in 2019 on toxic leachate from Delhi's landfills led to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) taking suo motu cognisance and ultimately asking the state government to start bio-mining to flatten and remove all three landfills in the capital. He also closely tracks the implementation of government policies on climate, renewable energy and environmental protection. His focus remains on impactful, public-interest journalism which explains how environmental decisions affect people's everyday lives.Read More

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