 "Cold wave to hit Delhi, North India this week; IMD forecasts fog & rain")
The national capital is set to witness a significant drop in temperatures this week, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasting a possible plunge to 6 degrees Celsius by Tuesday.
The IMD has predicted ‘moderate to dense’ fog in Delhi for today (December 9). The maximum temperature is expected to reach 27 degrees Celsius, while the minimum is likely to be around 8 degrees Celsius, according to news agency PTI.
On Sunday, Delhi recorded its second-lowest daytime temperature of the winter season, registering 23.7 degrees Celsius. The city and its nearby areas also experienced light rainfall in the evening.
The maximum temperature on Sunday was ‘a notch below normal’, with the recorded temperature on December 7 being 25.4 degrees Celsius, IMD data shows. The lowest maximum temperature so far this winter was 23.5 degrees Celsius on November 18.
This temperature drop is expected to bring cold wave conditions to Delhi and neighbouring northern states such as Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh, with these chilly conditions likely to persist until December 14. ALSO READ: Delhi schools bomb threat LIVE
Light rainfall in Delhi-NCR
On Sunday, various parts of Delhi, including IGI Airport, Vasant Kunj, Hauz Khas, Malviya Nagar, Kalkaji, Mehrauli, Tughlaqabad, Chhattarpur, IGNOU, Aya Nagar, and Deramandi, as well as NCR areas like Noida, Gurugram, and Manesar, and Farukhnagar in Haryana received light rainfall.
The IMD has predicted more rain in isolated locations in Delhi over the next 24 hours. Rain was also reported in areas like West Delhi, Outer North Delhi, and Gurugram.
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According to the IMD forecast, light rain is likely in certain areas of Delhi, including Rajouri Garden, Patel Nagar, Buddha Jayanti Park, Rashtrapati Bhavan, Najafgarh, Delhi Cantonment, and parts of NCR. The IMD also warned that “one or two spells of very light to light rainfall, accompanied by thunderstorms, are likely over Delhi-NCR during the next 12 hours”.
Cold wave in Delhi and North India
>The IMD has forecast fog for Monday, with the maximum and minimum temperatures expected to be around 27 degrees Celsius and 8 degrees Celsius, respectively.
>Minimum temperature is expected to fall to 6 degrees Celsius by December 10.
>On Saturday, the IMD had predicted light, isolated rainfall in Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi-NCR over the following two days, starting Sunday.
>Cold wave conditions are expected in West Rajasthan from December 9 to 14, with Punjab, Haryana-Chandigarh, and West Uttar Pradesh likely to experience them from December 11, according to the IMD.
>In Himachal Pradesh, the season’s first snowfall occurred in early December. The IMD has predicted snowfall in higher regions of Shimla and Mandi, with light precipitation expected in other parts of the state.
>Delhi’s air quality worsened, with the average Air Quality Index (AQI) falling into the ‘very poor’ category on Sunday. The AQI was recorded at 302 at 4 pm, news agency ANI reported.
>Last week, the Supreme Court allowed the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to relax Grap Stage-IV restrictions in Delhi-NCR, downgrading them to Stage-II due to improved air quality. However, Grap Stages-I and II remain in effect across the region.
(With agency inputs)