Brace For Biting Cold. Severe Winter To Hit Delhi From December 25

Delhi and its surrounding areas will witness severe cold wave-like conditions around Christmas with light rain expected to fall over north India, resulting in a drop in day temperatures. The national capital recorded a minimum temperature of 4.9 degrees Celsius today, nearly two notches lower than 6.8 degrees Celsius in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla.

Friday was Delhi's coldest day of the season, second only to Haryana's Hisar where mercury dropped to 4.2 degrees Celsius, Mahesh Palawat, Vice President at Skymet Weather said. Temperatures are expected to decline further in the next few days after snowfall in the Himalayan states which can bring rain to the plains including Delhi, he added.

"A western disturbance is expected around December 16 and 17 which may lead to snowfall in the hills and rains in the plains. Next, on December 23, 24 and 25 heavy snowfall is expected to affect temperatures in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, bringing drizzle and light rainfall. Thick fog will likely cover these states keeping the temperatures low during the day," the weatherman said.

Western disturbances are cyclonic storms that bring winter rains to north India.

Even though mercury is dropping, cold-wave conditions are yet to hit Delhi as day temperatures still remain high, Mr Palawat said. "Delhi recorded a lower minimum temperature but Shimla will still feel colder because its maximum temperature in not exceeding 15 degrees Celsius. In Delhi, mercury is rising several notches during the day, reaching 24 degrees Celsius, after the initial drop in the morning," he explained.

This year will witness a delayed and short winter, the weatherman said, blaming climate change and global warming for shrinking winters and also possibly cutting short the spring next year.

"Usually, western disturbances begin around October and the last two months of the year see heavy snowfall and severe winter in the north. Now, these disturbances are weakening and snowfall is receding. Every year, October to February are getting hotter leading to shrinking winters," he said.

The weatherman said the cold is likely to last from the second week of December to the second week of January. This year, temperatures rose in March, ushering in summer right after February, reducing the spring season. "We are now moving from winters to summers, skipping spring," he said.

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