Delhi Colder Than Hill Stations Dharamshala And Nainital As Cold Wave Continues In Capital

The northern belt which includes Haryana, Punjab, north Rajasthan, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh will be covered in dense to very dense fog

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New Delhi: On Tuesday, when the minimum temperature fell below that of Dehradun, Dharamsala, and Nainital, the national capital froze to the bone as the lowest temperature in the national capital dropped to 4 degree Celsius on Tuesday with cold wave sweeping the city, reported news agency ANI. The weather office predicted a cold day due to a high windchill factor, a measure of the rate at which skin exposed to the air loses heat.

As per RK Jenamani at the Indian Meteorological Department, the lowest temperature of 4.0 degree Celsius was recorded at Aya Nagar while cold wave is still prevailing at isolated places. 

From December 28 onwards there will be a significant improvement as the cold wave will go due to western disturbance, the IMD official told the news agency, adding that Fresh cold wave conditions will prevail again from December 31 to January 1. 

Jenamani also said that the northern belt which includes Haryana, Punjab, north Rajasthan, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh will be covered in dense to very dense fog. “There will be improvement on Dec 29 because of western disturbance which will bring fresh snowfall in Jammu and Kashmir, Leh and Himachal Pradesh,” he added. 

In Delhi, the lowest temp of 4.0 degrees celsius was recorded at Aya Nagar and cold wave is still prevailing at isolated places. From Dec 28 onwards there will be a significant improvement as the cold wave will go due to western disturbance: RK Jenamani, IMD pic.twitter.com/cGnM0Hf8s1

— ANI (@ANI) December 27, 2022

Dense fog blotted out the sun in northwest India, including Delhi, on Tuesday morning as well, lowering visibility to just 50 metres in the national capital and affecting road traffic and train movement.

Fifteen trains to and from Delhi were reported running late, while two were rescheduled, a Railways spokesperson said.

With a high windchill factor – a measure of the rate of heat loss from skin that is exposed to the air – in play, the weather office has predicted a cold day ahead.

The Safdarjung observatory, Delhi's primary weather station, recorded a maximum temperature of 15.6 degrees Celsius on Monday, six notches below normal and the lowest day temperature in December since December 17, 2020.

On Tuesday, Safdarjung logged a minimum temperature of 5.6 degrees Celsius -- a notch below normal. The maximum temperature is predicted to settle around 16 degrees Celsius.

Meteorologists attributed the sharp drop in day temperatures to frigid north westerly winds barrelling through the plains and reduced sunshine due to foggy weather.