NEW DELHI: Cold snap conditions continued in most of Delhi on Friday and the minimum temperature dropped to 4.4 degrees Celsius, three levels below normal, at the Safdarjung Observatory, the city’s base station. Cold snap conditions are likely to continue on Saturday as well.
Mercury plummeted to 2.7 degrees Celsius, the lowest minimum temperature on Friday, in Jafarpur, followed by 3.5 degrees at Aya Nagar and 3.8 at Lodhi Road, according to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). The Met department said residents of Delhi could get relief for four days from Sunday as temperatures are likely to rise.
the maximum temperature recorded on Friday was 19.8 degrees Celsius, three degrees below normal, in Safadarjung. On Thursday, Delhi recorded a “severe cold day” with a maximum temperature of 15.2 degrees Celsius, seven levels below normal. The maximum temperature rose on Friday due to the disappearance of the “raised fog” that rises to a higher altitude than usual and partially obscures the sunlight, making daytime conditions cooler, Met officials said.
Kuldeep Srivastava, IMD scientist and head of the Regional Weather Forecast Center, said: “The minimum temperature dropped due to cold winds coming from the snow-covered mountainous region. Cold wave conditions are forecast for Saturday in some places during the morning hours. High and low temperatures are likely to be around 21 and 4 degrees Celsius, respectively, on Saturday. ” A cold snap is declared when the minimum temperature is four or more degrees below normal.
According to the forecast, Delhi is likely to get a respite from the “cold day” or “cold snap” for four days from Sunday. “The minimum temperature may be around 7 degrees Celsius in the first four days of next week, while the maximum is likely to remain around 23 degrees Celsius. Moderate fog is expected from December 22 to 24,” he said An official.
Meanwhile, Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) was in the “poor” category at 281. The System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), the forecasting body under the Ministry of Science of Union Earth said: “Surface-level winds are high and west-southwest. Strong surface winds are forecast through Saturday and likely to subside after that. Current best ventilation conditions are likely continue for the next two days and decrease thereafter. ”
The AQI is forecast to remain in the “poor” to “very poor” category on Saturday, but will likely deteriorate to the lower end of “very poor” on Sunday, SAFAR said.
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