Minimum temperatures are expected to slip by 2-4°C over many parts of northwest India in the next two to three days, IMD said, with Delhi’s minimum temperature expected to fall to 5°C by December 21.
A western disturbance affecting Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh led to a slight boost in Delhi’s minimum temperature on Sunday, which grew to 6.5 degrees Celsius (°C) in comparison to the 5.5°C the previous day. However, Sunday’s low was still two degrees below the normal for this time of the year, as per India Meteorological Department (IMD) data.
Minimum temperatures are expected to slip by 2-4°C over many parts of northwest India in the next two to three days, IMD said, with Delhi’s minimum temperature is expected to fall to 5°C by December 21. “Though the western disturbance is not directly impacting Delhi, it is still leading to cloudiness, which has raised the minimum slightly and halted the dip in temperature. Mercury should remain around 6-7°C for the next three days,” said Kuldeep Srivastava, scientist at IMD.
“Cold, northwesterly winds are expected to blow over north India when the western disturbance moves away. But we are not expecting onset of cold wave conditions yet,” said M Mohapatra, director general, IMD.
Minimum temperatures vary between 5-10°C in most parts of Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, UP and some parts of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, north Chhattisgarh, western parts of Gangetic West Bengal, north interior Odisha and Bihar.
The Capital witnessed a seasons-lowest temperature of 4.9°C on Friday — the city’s coldest December day since New Year’s Eve on 2021, when the temperature was 3.8°C. Temperatures didn’t fall below five degrees last December, with lowest at 5°C on December 26.
The maximum on Sunday was 24.7°C — three degrees above normal, but a degree below the 25.4°C on Saturday. In the absence of dense fog and low clouds, the maximum is predicted to remain between 23 and 25 degrees for the next six days. Delhi also recorded shallow fog on Sunday, with the lowest visibility recorded at 600 metres. However, the conditions did not hinder operations at IGI airport.
Meanwhile, Delhi’s pollution levels continued to remain in the “very poor” zone, with a 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) reading of 331 on Sunday — a slight betterment from the 354 on Saturday. The air quality is expected to remain “very poor” in the next three days too.
Source: dnaindia.com