The national capital is bracing for a change of winter landscape over the next five days, with cold conditions expected to persist across the city. Delhi experienced its first cold wave of the season on Saturday, December 20 and recorded its coldest day of the year so far with the maximum temperature dropping 5.3 degrees below normal to 16.9 degrees Celsius.
The India Meteorological Department has predicted cold mornings in the coming days, with heavy fog likely to occur frequently during the night and early morning hours.
Here is the detailed weather forecast for Delhi for the next five days:
— Sunday 21 December: According to the forecast of the meteorological department, the city witnessed partly clear skies during the day. A layer of fog and shallow fog formed after sunset and is expected to persist throughout the night.
— Monday 22 December: The first day of the week will witness partly clear skies. Residents can expect light to dense fog covering Delhi during the morning hours.
— Tuesday 23 December: Conditions will begin to clear on Tuesday. There will be mostly clear skies, although some shallow to light fog will develop in the morning hours. The IMD also said surface winds of 10-15 kmph will prevail during the day.
— Wednesday, December 24: The pattern of mostly clear skies continues through midweek. Residents can expect shallow to moderate fog in the morning hours. The predicted surface wind speed is 10-15 km/h, which will blow during the day.
– Thursday, December 25: Christmas Day will be mainly characterized by clear skies. However, the pattern of light fog sightings during the morning hours of the day will persist.
Air quality in Delhi
Meanwhile, Delhi’s air quality continues to deteriorate as temperatures drop. The city recorded an average air quality index (AQI) of 387 at 8:05 am today, falling in the “very poor” range.
According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, 19 out of 40 monitoring stations across the city recorded AQIs above 400, which falls under the ‘severe’ category. Apart from Mathura Road, all other stations recorded AQI in the ‘poor’ range.
In response to the deteriorating air quality in the national capital, the authorities have implemented all measures under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) Phase IV across the Delhi-NCR region.
