As Cold Wave Intensifies In North, Delhi Shivers At 2.6 Degree C

On Saturday, 29 December Delhi’s min temperature was recorded at 2.6 °C , four notches below the season’s average.

(Photo: AP)

Delhites woke up to chilly morning on Sunday, 30 December with the minimum temperature settling at 3 degrees Celsius, four notches below the season's average.

Moderate foggy conditions affected the visibility which was recorded at 600 metres at 5.30 AM and 500 metres at 8.30 AM, said a Met department official.

The maximum temperature is expected to hover around 21 degrees Celsius, and the humidity at 8.30 am was 97 per cent, an India Meteorological Department (IMD) official told IANS.

The visibility in the morning was 1,500 metres in most parts of the city, he said.

"There was fog in the morning. The sky will be clear ahead with haze and smoke. Some places in the city may face a cold wave situation in the day," the IMD official said.

According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), the overall air quality in the national capital was found in 'very poor' category with the Air Quality Index of the city registering a score of 388.

Places like Noida, Pitam Pura and Delhi University showed a 'severe' PM 2.5 and PM 10 level, while Chandni Chowk was a little better with a 'very poor' on the count of these pollutants.

Saturday, 29 December's maximum temperature settled at 21 degrees Celsius, one notch below the season's average, while the minimum temperature was recorded at 2.6 degrees Celsius, four notches below the season's average. It was also the season's lowest.

Cloud Cover Brings Relief to Freezing J&K

The minimum temperature across Jammu and Kashmir improved on Sunday, 30 December due to cloud cover, breaking the cycle of severe cold, the Met Office said.

An official of the Met department said the night long cloud cover led to an improvement in the minimum temperature.

In Srinagar, against Saturday, 29 December’s -7.2 degree Celsius, the minimum temperature in Srinagar was -2.4 degree Celsius on Sunday, 30 December.

Leh also recorded improvement in night temperature from Saturday’s -17.5 degree Celsius to -12.2 degree Celsius on Sunday, 30 December.

Similarly, in Pahalgam and Gulmarg also, Sunday's minimum temperature was -2.5 degree Celsius and -4 degree Celsius respectively, against Saturday's -8.3 degree and -7 degree.

Drass recorded -12.8 degree Celsius as the minimum temperature on Sunday against Saturday's -21.1 degree Celsius.

The minimum temperature in Jammu on Sunday, 30 December was 6.5 degrees Celsius against Saturday 29 December's 3.1 degrees Celsius.

Elsewhere, Katra recorded 6.6 degrees, Batote 3.4 degrees, Bannihal 1.8 degrees and Bhaderwah 0.3 degree as the night's lowest temperatures.

No Rain And Snow In Himachal Till New Year's Eve

It was partly cloudy with the cold wave sweeping most parts of Himachal Pradesh on Sunday, 30 December while the Met office forecast "no chance of rainfall and snowfall in the state till New Year's Eve".

The western disturbances - storm systems originating from the Caspian Sea and moving across the Afghanistan-Pakistan region - will be active in the region from 1 January, with rain and snow at many places, Manmohan Singh, the Director of the Met Office here, told IANS.