NEW DELHI: When Delhiites woke up to a bone-chilling cold morning on Monday, many didn’t realise the day would break all records to be the coldest December in over a century.
After all, the national capital has been experiencing unusually harsh weather over the past two weeks with cold waves making life difficult for residents.
On Monday, dense fog engulfed the entire NRC causing low visibility affecting road and air traffic. The maximum temperature took a big tumble on Monday to settle at 9.4 degrees Celsius, making it the coldest December day since 1901. It was also the coldest day in the national capital during the December-February period since 1951.
According to the Safdarjung Observatory, the minimum temperature settled at 2.6 degrees Celsius, four notches below the season’s average; humidity level was 100 per cent.
The minimum temperature at Palam was 2.9 degrees Celsius, Lodhi Road was 2.2 degrees Celsius and Ayanagar 2.5 degrees Celsius.
“I am experiencing this type of weather in Delhi for the first time. I couldn’t even drive to my office in the morning. It was difficult to see anything on the road,” Pravin Jain, a businessman, SAID.
Alok Kumar, a Uber driver, said he was forced to buy more blankets as well as heaters to cope with the weather. “Earlier, we managed with one quilt per person at night but now at least two are needed,” he said.
Parvati, a South Delhi resident, said, “I have been wearing extra clothes and covering even the windows with to keep the house warm.”
The IMD has predicted improvement in the dense fog situation and increase in the day temperatures with easterly winds from Tuesday.
Weather experts said the absence of a strong western disturbance for the past 10 days, which could have disrupted the direction of icy winds coming to the national capital from the hills, resulted in Delhi experiencing its second-coldest December in over a century.
Northern plains colder than hill stations
Maximum temperature on Monday was hovering below 9.4 degree Celsius in the national capital
Delhi colder than Himalayas!
The minimum temperature on Monday was 2.6° Celsius, which was lower than the hill station Shimla in the Himalayas that had recorded 3° Celsius
Biting icy winds
Delhi has been shivering under an intense spell of cold wave for the past two weeks. The day temperature on Monday was half of what is considered normal for this day of the year, Met said
Foggy Tuesday
Foggy conditions are likely to prevail on Tuesday with the minimum temperature likely to settle around three degrees Celsius. The capital on Saturday had recorded its coldest day of the season
Air quality worsens
Intense cold, high humidity and low wind speed resulted in accumulation of pollutants leading to further deterioration in the national capital’s air quality. AQI was in the severe category at 446
(With inputs from agencies)