Delhi weather update: Delhi-NCR woke up to bitter cold as national capital got colder than Mussoorie, IMD warns of…

Delhi-NCR weather update: Delhi-NCR woke up to the bitter cold on Saturday as strong cold wave tightened its grip on Delhi-NCR, making life difficult for people as dense fog and severe cold covered the region for the larger part of the day. More importantly, the national capital recorded its first cold day of the season and, surprisingly, turned colder than Mussoorie, popularly known as the Queen of the Hills. Here are all the details you need to note about Delhi’s weather conditions.

Delhi’s maximum temperature drops

Delhi’s maximum temperature dropped sharply to 16.9 degrees Celsius, which is 5.3 degrees below normal for this time of year. In comparison, Mussoorie recorded a much higher maximum temperature of 22.3 degrees Celsius. This showed how intense the cold conditions were in the plains.

Delhi IMD weather update

According to the India(BHARAT) Meteorological Department (IMD), a “cold day” in the plains is declared when the minimum temperature falls to 10 degrees Celsius or below and the maximum temperature drops 4.5 to 6.4 degrees below normal. Delhi met both these conditions on Saturday.

At Safdarjung, the city’s main weather station, the minimum temperature was recorded at 6.1 degrees Celsius, which is two degrees below normal. On Friday, the weather was relatively less harsh, with the minimum temperature at nine degrees and the maximum at 22.2 degrees Celsius. With foggy mornings and low daytime temperatures, the cold spell continues to trouble people across Delhi-NCR.

Very dense fog leads to visibility drops

The weather department explained that “very dense fog” is recorded when visibility drops to between 0 and 50 metres, while visibility of 51 to 200 metres is categorised as “dense”. Visibility between 201 and 500 metres falls under the category of “moderate” fog, and visibility between 501 and 1,000 metres is termed “shallow” fog.

Delhi’s severe air pollution

Alongside the poor visibility due to the fog in North India(BHARAT), Delhi continued to grapple with severe air pollution. According to data from the Central Pollution Control Board, the Air Quality Index remained in the “very poor” category at 376 as of 6:00 AM.

(With inputs from agencies)