A fresh cold spell is expected to sweep across Delhi and neighbouring Haryana and Chandigarh in the first week of January, with temperatures dropping to 7 to 9 degrees Celsius. The India Meteorological Departmenthas sounded a cold wave alert in isolated pockets from January 4 to January 6. AQI concerns continued to linger with the Delhi NCR recording a 248 and under ‘poor’pollution level on Sunday.
When is it considered to be a cold wave?
As per the IMD, a cold wave is usually declared when the minimum temperature falls 4.5 degrees Celsius to 6.5 degrees Celsius below the long-term average. The national capital will be facing such weather conditions at several locations over the next few days.
ALSO READIMD warns of dense fog over Punjab, Haryana, UP and Bihar; Delhi set for cold wave
For January 4, the Met Department has forecast a maximum of 17-19 degrees Celsius and a lower range of 6-8 degrees Celsius with mainly clear skies. The colder nights, along with light winds, are likely to meet the criteria for a cold wave in some parts of the city and the wider region.
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— RWFC New Delhi (@RWFC_ND) January 3, 2026
Cold wave likely to persist till Jan 6 and dense fog till till Jan 9 over Delhi region
Along with the decline in temperature, visibility is set to remain a concern. An IMD weather alert for northwest India states that cold wave conditions at a few places over Delhi, Chandigarh, and Haryana from January 4 to January 6, easing to dense fog can be expected at isolated places from January 7 to 9.
Dense fog in night and morning hours is predicted over West Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Chandigarh, and Haryana between January 6 and 10, 2026. This means foggy mornings for Delhi and its nearby areas are likely to persist even after the most intense phase of the cold wave is over.
For Delhi, the city forecast for January 4 mentions moderate fog at many places with dense fog at isolated places during the morning hours, followed by clearer skies later in the day.
ALSO READWeather today: Dense fog engulfs Delhi-NCR as AQI jumps to ‘severe’ level; IMD issues alert for UP, Himachal
North India shivers; Delhi AQI stays ‘poor’
The colder conditions in the national capital are part of a wider chill across North India. According to a report by PTI, the upper reaches of Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh experienced temperatures below freezing on Saturday, while the plains in several states experienced cold day conditions and thick fog in the early hours.
In Delhi, the weather discomfort has been intensified by air pollution. The city’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) was placed at 248 on Sunday, in the ‘poor’ category, as per data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Several monitoring stations across the city have recorded readings in the “very poor” scale. |
