It was the coldest minimum temperature for this year on Monday as overcast conditions intensified the cold wave conditions in Delhi with early morning fog affecting rail traffic. The city’s maximum temperature was recorded five notches below the season’s average at 16.2°C and the minimum dropped by 1.5°C to settle at 5.7°C, two points below the normal.
Early morning fog affected visibility and 41 trains were running behind schedule by several hours. However, flight operations were smooth, airport authorities said. The visibility was 400 meters at 5.30 am and improved to 700 meters at 8.30 am and remained the same till 5.30 am. The humidity in air oscillated between 97 per cent and 63 per cent.
The Met Department has predicted partly cloudy skies for Tuesday. “The skies will be partly cloudy. There will be moderate fog in the morning. The maximum and minimum temperatures are expected to hover at 17°C and 8°C respectively,” said officials in the Met Department.
The harsh winter weather in the north claimed seven lives in Uttar Pradesh even as fog caused disruptions in rail and air schedules on Monday amidst a forecast for rain or snowfall in some parts of the region in the coming days.
Meanwhile, in UP, as many as seven persons succumbed to the bitter cold conditions, the Met Department said. The situation was no better in Punjab and Haryana, where day temperatures settled much below the normal while adverse weather conditions hit air and rail traffic. Thus, a few flights from Chandigarh were delayed on Monday, said an official at the airport there.