Delhi set to see its coldest day in 119 years; flights, metros delayed

Delhi witnessed very dense fog on Monday morning. The minimum temperature was 4 degrees Celsius at 7:00 am on Monday. The temperature at Safdarjung and Palam was 9 and 8 degrees Celsius respectively. Things were not better at Aya Nagar and Lodi Road also. The temperature at both these locations was 7.8 degrees Celsius and 9.2 degrees Celsius, respectively. This is, however, for the first time Delhi has witnessed such a long cold spell and also the lowest-ever day temperature.

If the IMD is to be believed, this is going to be the coldest day in December in the last 119 years. The meteorological department said that the previous lowest temperature recorded for a day in December was in 1901.

The cold weather is not going to wane away anytime soon as the minimum temperature has reduced down to 2 degree Celsius in some areas, such as parts of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu. Kashmir and Ladakh.

This is the main reason behind the red-coded warning issued by IMD to several northern states such as Delhi, Punjab and Haryana. The IMD issues a red-coded warning in case of extreme weather conditions. According to the IMD, light rain is likely to occur between January 1, 2020, and January 3, 2020. A hailstorm is also expected on January 2, 2020.

ALSO READ: Delhi temperature: 2.6 degree celsius temp recorded; flights, trains delayed due to dense fog

Heavy fog not only affected airline operations adversely but also slowed down metro services. A total of 21 flights were diverted and 40 others were cancelled till 6:00 pm due to dense fog conditions, a Delhi airport official told ANI. Many trains were delayed owing to the lack of visibility on tracks.

Owing to the dense fog conditions and lack of visibility, the passengers have been advised to stay in touch with the concerned airlines for updated information.

ALSO READ: Himachal Pradesh likely to witness snowfall on New Year's Eve