Cold wave intensifies in Delhi-NCR, north India; expected to continue

The cold wave's impact has escalated in Delhi NCR and other parts of northern India, following two days of bright, soothing sunshine. On Sunday, temperatures dropped below the minimum, subjecting the national capital to severe cold weather and intense fog. The situation seems unlikely to change significantly on Monday, with a dense fog layer engulfing Delhi.

People were seen jogging around Delhi's Kartavya Path amidst low visibility due to the dense fog. Traffic movement was also affected at Delhi's Akshardham area. Furthermore, train services at the New Delhi Railway Station have been affected by the adverse weather. On Sunday, the maximum temperature was recorded as 3 degrees below normal.

The weather department forecasts moderate fog on Monday morning, with clear skies during the day and maximum and minimum temperatures of 22 and seven degrees respectively. Similar weather conditions are expected on Tuesday, with light rains anticipated on Wednesday and Thursday, potentially causing a slight drop in daytime temperature.

The IMD forecast also included dense fog and cold day alert for Uttarakhand on January 29 as well as light rain in the hilly state from January 31. Dense fog is likely to prevail in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh till February 1. 

List of states that will witness dense fog, cold day, moderate rainfall: 

• Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan will witness very dense fog conditions on January 29 and 30
• Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh to witness very dense fog on January 29
• Very dense fog and severe cold day conditions are likely to occur over Bihar from January 29-31
• Uttarakhand, north Madhya Pradesh, sub-Himalayan West Bengal, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura are also likely to report dense fog conditions on January 29 
• Several parts of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand are expected to report severe cold day and cold day conditions on January 29
• Parts of Sub-Himalayan West Bengal are likely to report severe cold wave conditions on January 29
• Jammu, Kashmir, Ladakh, Gilgit, Baltistan, Muzaffarabad, and Himachal Pradesh are likely to report moderate rainfall or snowfall till February 3 
• While Kashmir will likely report heavy rainfall or snowfall on January 30 and 31, similar weather conditions are expected over Himachal Pradesh on January 31
• Light to moderate rainfall very likely over Uttarakhand, Punjab, Chandigarh, Haryana, and west Uttar Pradesh from January 31-February 2

Dense fog has been observed in parts of Uttar Pradesh, isolated pockets of Bihar, Punjab, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh, according to a post by IMD on X, formerly known as Twitter. No relief from the cold has been reported in Haryana, Punjab, and western Uttar Pradesh, with the minimum temperature in all three areas below normal at 3 degrees Celsius.

Visibility of around 500 metres was recorded in Patiala and Amritsar (Punjab); Palam and Safadarjung (Delhi); Ganganagar and Jaipur (Rajasthan); Bareilly, Bahraich, Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Lucknow and Sultanpur (Uttar Pradesh); Purnea, Patna, Gaya and Bhagalpur (Bihar); Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh); Jharsiguda and Puri (Odisha); and Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh). 

Also Read: No water supply for several areas in Delhi on Jan 29, 30 for 16 hours; list of areas affected