Cold wave sweeps Delhi, fog delays trains by 3 hours
A cold wave continued to grip Delhi on Monday as dense fog brought down visibility to 50 m in some areas. Road and rail traffic were impacted with ten trains running late by 1:45 to 3:30 hours. The India Meteorological Department's (IMD) Safdarjung observatory—Delhi's primary weather station—recorded the minimum temperature at 5 degrees Celsius, which was three notches below normal.
Why does this story matter?
As the Christmas mood set in, numerous regions in northern, northwestern, and central India witnessed a foggy morning. Temperatures have declined considerably in Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan, among other northern parts, over the last few weeks amid the cold wave. The cold climate, coupled with dense fog, has led to significantly reduced visibility and even caused road accidents.
Slight increase in temperature from Sunday
The IMD said that the maximum temperature on Monday was expected to settle around 19 degrees Celsius, which was recorded at 16.2 degrees Celsius on Sunday—five notches below normal and this season's lowest maximum temperature so far. The minimum temperature at two other weather stations in Delhi—Ridge and Ayanagar—was recorded at around 4 degrees Celsius on Monday, up from Sunday's 3 degrees Celsius.
Foggy conditions are likely to subside after 3 days
When is it considered cold wave
The IMD classifies a day as cold when the minimum temperature is equal to or less than 10 degrees Celsius and the maximum temperature is 4.5 degrees Celsius below normal. When the minimum temperature drops to 4 degrees Celsius in the plains, it is declared a cold wave. Fog is categorized as 'very dense' when visibility is between 0 to 50 m.
Zero visibility at Bathinda, Bikaner
Parts of Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, west Uttar Pradesh, and north Rajasthan saw dense fog on Monday. Bathinda in Punjab and Bikaner in Rajasthan reported zero visibility whereas Punjab's Amritsar and Patiala, Haryana's Ambala and Hisar, Rajasthan's Ganganagar and Churu, and UP's Bareilly saw visibility plunge to 50 m. The IMD forecast foggy conditions to persist in these areas over the next few days.
