Delhi records coldest January morning in three years, air quality worsens

Delhi recorded its coldest January morning in three years on Tuesday as the minimum temperature dropped to 3 degrees Celsius, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

The capital recorded a low of 1.4 degrees Celsius on January 16, 2023, according to the weather department.

Safdarjung, the city's primary observatory, recorded a minimum temperature of 3 degrees Celsius, 4.4 notches below normal, IMD data showed.Palam recorded a minimum temperature of 4 degrees Celsius, 3.3 notches below normal, and Lodhi Road recorded a minimum temperature of 3 degrees Celsius, three notches below normal.

The Ridge recorded a low of 4.4 degrees Celsius, 3.7 notches below normal, and Ayanagar recorded a low of 3.2 degrees Celsius, 3.9 notches below normal.

According to the IMD, cold wave conditions are declared when minimum temperatures fall 4.5 to 6.4 degrees below normal. The maximum temperature for the day is expected to settle around 20 degrees Celsius.

Cold wave conditions are likely to persist over Delhi on Wednesday as well, the IMD said.

Delhi's air quality deteriorated to the 'very poor' category with the Air Quality Index (AQI) settling at 337, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data.

The CPCB's SAMEER app showed that 29 monitoring stations recorded air quality in the 'very poor' category, one in 'severe' and nine in 'poor'.Anand Vihar recorded the worst air quality with an AQI of 411, falling in the 'severe' category.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered 'good', 51 to 100 'satisfactory', 101 to 200 'moderate', 201 to 300 'poor', 301 to 400 'very poor', and 401 to 500 'severe'.