Chilling climax to 2025: City sees coldest December day in 6 years

The Capital recorded its coldest December day in six years on Wednesday, ending the year under a heavy winter pall marked by biting cold, dense fog, and a haze of pollution — its seasonal companions.

- Jasjeev Gandhiok

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said that Delhi experienced “cold day” to “severe cold day” conditions as maximum temperature dropped dramatically on Wednesday, registering at 14.2°C, more than 6°C below normal and over 7°C from the 21.5°C a day earlier.

The last time Delhi had a lower maximum in this month was 2019 when it was 13.3°C on December 29.

Under IMD’s classification, a “cold day” is when the minimum temperature drops below 10°C and the maximum temperature is 4.5°C or lower than normal.

While Delhi’s maximum and minimum are recorded at Safdarjung, other locations were even colder. “Severe cold day” conditions were logged at Palam (13.6°C) and Lodhi Road (13.4°C), temperatures were 6.8°C and 7.6°C below normal, respectively. It is classified a “severe cold day” when the maximum is 6.5°C or lower than normal. The lowest maximum in the city was 13.1°C recorded at the Ridge station, but since it was 6.2°C below normal, it was a “cold day” as well. The minimum remained 6.4°C, which is largely normal for this time of the year.