The cold snap over North India’s plains and adjoining parts of Central India may continue for the next three to four days till an incoming western disturbance usher in some warmth from Monday (February 1) as clouds, scattered rain/snow, thunderstorm and lightning engulf the region.

India Meteorological Department (IMD) said that dry north-westerly winds from across the frigid international border will bear ‘cold day’ (when maximum day temperatures are at 16 degrees Celsius or below) to ‘severe cold day conditions’ over Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar until Sunday.

Cold day to severe cold day

Similar conditions are forecast over parts of Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh during until Monday and abate thereafter. Cold wave conditions are also forecast over Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Saurashtra and Kutch. Ground frost conditions may develop over Punjab, Haryana and North Rajasthan on Thursday and Friday.

Meanwhile, dense to very dense fog may descend over Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Uttar Pradesh until Monday. Dense fog is also likely over Bihar, hills of West Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura until Saturday and over Odisha from Friday to Sunday.

Private forecaster Skymet Weather said that this Republic Day happened to be the coldest in the last 21 years. The base observatory at Safdarjung, Delhi, recorded a minimum temperature of 2.1 degree Celsius, 7 degrees Celsius below the normal. January is the coldest month of the year with an average minimum of about 7 degrees Celsius. In the last 21 years, a single-digit minimum was recorded on 17 occasions.

Highest day temperature

As for the rest four, the highest temperature of 13.6 degree Celsius was measured on January 26, 2017, followed by 13.2 degree Celsius (2009); 12.1 degrees Celsius (2002); and 11.8 degree Celsius (2000). Only on three occasions had the mercury dipped below 5 degree Celsius; 4.8 degree Celsius (2006); 4.1 degree Celsius (2008); and 2.1 degrees Celsius (2021).

With the coldest Republic Day, Delhi goes on record to have the highest number of cold wave days (five) in the last eight years when the minimum temperature has dropped to 4 degrees or less. During this month so far, the minimum was at 1.1 degree Celsius on January 1; 3.2 degrees Celsius on January 2; 3.2 degrees Celsius on January 13; 2 degrees Celsius on January 14; and 2.1 degrees Celsius on January 26.

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