New Delhi: North India is set to remain in the grip of severe winter conditions over the next few days with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicting
cold wave conditions at isolated places in Delhi between January 2 and January 5. Similar conditions are likely to prevail across Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana during the same period.
According to the IMD, a cold wave is declared when the minimum temperature falls 4.5 to 6.5 degrees Celsius below the normal average. While Delhi has already been witnessing chilly conditions, the weather office warned that the cold is likely to intensify in the coming days.
It is expected that there will be dense to very dense fog during the night and morning hours at many places in the national capital till January 6. On Thursday, visibility remained poor in several areas with Safdarjung and Palam recording a low visibility of 500 metres during early morning hours before improving slightly later in the day. Delhi’s maximum temperature was recorded at 17.3 degrees Celsius, two notches below normal while the minimum settled at 10.6 degrees Celsius. Across Delhi-NCR, maximum temperatures ranged between 14.8 degrees Celsius and 17.3 degrees Celsius, remaining below normal at most monitoring stations.
Ayanagar recorded the lowest maximum temperature at 14.8 degrees Celsius while Palam logged 15.9 degrees Celsius. However, minimum temperatures hovered between 9 degrees Celsius and 10.6 degrees Celsius across the region. Relative humidity levels remained high, touching 97 per cent in the morning, contributing to persistent foggy conditions.
Western disturbance driving weather
IMD scientist Naresh Kumar said the prevailing weather is being influenced by an active western disturbance positioned over north Pakistan. “Light to moderate rainfall and snowfall occurred over the western Himalayan region, while very light rainfall activity was reported over the NCR,” he said.
He added that low temperatures, light winds and high moisture levels are allowing fog to linger, prolonging cold conditions in the plains.
Delhi ended 2025 on a particularly cold note, recording its coldest December day in six years on Wednesday when the maximum temperature plunged to 14.2 degrees Celsius, underlining the severity of this winter spell.
