Delhi shivers as mercury drops to 2.4 deg Celsius for second time in a week

Cold weather conditions continued in Delhi on Wednesday as the minimum temperature settled at 2.4 degrees Celsius, five notches below normal, officials said.

Twenty-nine trains were delayed by two to nine hours as fog reduced visibility, they said.

"The minimum temperature was recorded at 2.4 degrees Celsius, five notches below normal," a Meteorological Department official said, adding that the humidity was 97 per cent.

On Saturday too the national capital had recorded a minimum temperature of 2.4 degrees Celsius.

The air quality in the national capital at 9.38 am on Wednesday was recorded at 433 in the "severe" category.

The weather department has forecast a partly cloudy sky with moderate fog over the next few days. The maximum temperature would hover around 16 degrees Celsius.

December 2019 recorded 18 consecutive 'cold days' or an 18-day 'cold spell', the maximum after 17 cold days in December 1997.

The maximum temperature in Delhi took a big tumble on Monday to settle at 9.4 degrees Celsius, making it the coldest December day since 1901.