Delhi-NCR shivers, mercury dips to 3.6°C; IMD issues red alert for ‘very dense fog’ – Firstpost

The national capital, along with other nearby areas, woke up to severe cold on Thursday, prompting the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) to issue a “very dense fog” warning till morning.

“Very Dense Fog is very likely to occur at many places over Central, New Delhi, North, North West, South, South West West in next 3 hours,” IMD reported in its warning earlier during the day. It had issued a red alert for fog in Delhi-NCR.

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What was the temperature in Delhi presently?

Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 3.6°C in Lodhi Road on Wednesday morning, while Gurugram saw temperatures plunge to 3.5°C on the same day.

The India Meteorological Department has predicted that thick fog will persist across northwest India in the coming days. Consequently, the agency has issued a cold wave warning for several states surrounding Delhi, including Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.

Meanwhile, Indira Gandhi International (IGI) issued an orange alert owing to low visibility around 50 metres at 6:00 am.

The India Meteorological Department warned of potential flight disruptions, delays, and cancellations, noting that airport operations are presently functioning under CAT III conditions.

“Cold wave conditions at isolated places. Moderate fog at many places with dense fog at isolated places during morning hours,” IMD says.

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The weather department declared the city has been experiencing one of its coldest spells in recent years, with minimum temperatures hovering near 3 degrees Celsius since the beginning of the week. Delhi had last recorded a lower January minimum temperature of 1.4 degrees Celsius on January 16, 2023.

Station-wise data recorded at 5:30 pm showed that the Safdarjung Observatory, the city’s principal weather station, recorded a maximum temperature of 20 degrees Celsius. Lodhi Road recorded 19.3 degrees Celsius, Ayanagar 19.2 degrees Celsius and Ridge 18.2 degrees Celsius, while Palam reported a significantly lower maximum temperature of 16 degrees Celsius.

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Safdarjung recorded a minimum temperature of 3.8 degrees Celsius, 3.6 degrees below normal. Palam logged a minimum of 4.4 degrees Celsius, 2.9 degrees below normal, while Lodhi Road recorded 3.6 degrees Celsius, 2.4 degrees below the seasonal average.

With inputs from agencies

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