Gurugram wakes up to 3.5°C amid cold wave and fog

Although the temperature increased by 0.3°C from the day before, it was of little relief, as the IMD classifies it as a “coldwave” when the actual temperature falls below 4°C. The maximum temperature on the day, meanwhile, was 18.4°C.

The Millennium City continued to reel from a cold wave and moderate fog in the early hours for the third consecutive day, recording a minimum temperature of 3.5 degrees Celsius (°C) on Wednesday. Visibility also dipped to 300 metres at 3am and only improved to around 350m by 8.30am, especially in the rural areas and outskirts, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Visibility also dipped to 300 metres at 3am and only improved to around 350m by 8.30am. (Parveen Kumar/HT)

Although the temperature increased by 0.3°C from the day before, it was of little relief, as the IMD classifies it as a “coldwave” when the actual temperature falls below 4°C. The maximum temperature on the day, meanwhile, was 18.4°C.

Experts said that the conditions are likely to persist for the next few days, but predicted a slight increase in temperature and rainfall at isolated places on January 18 and 19. Surinder Paul, IMD director for Chandigarh, said that there is an orange alert in place for Gurugram on Thursday.

Another senior IMD official said, “Weather is likely to improve in the region in the coming two to three days, with mercury seeing slight improvement, rising by 2 to 3 degrees towards normalcy.”

In neighbouring Faridabad, the minimum temperature was 4.2°C and in Jhajjar, it was 5.3°. The lowest minimum temperature in the state was 0.4°C, recorded in Saragthal.

On the day, residents also reported reduced visibility on key arterial roads of Southern Peripheral Road (SPR) and Golf Course Extension Road (GCER) in the early morning.

Anil Mehta, a daily commuter, said,“The visibility gets so poor on SPR during fog that even road signs disappear. Almost every day, we have been experiencing fog on these roads, hence due to which even a 15 minutes stretch usually takes 30 minutes to cross.”

The westerly winds maintained a speed of 5.5-7.4 km/hr during the night and increased up to 11km/hour at 9am on Wednesday, but failed to disperse pollutants, as Gurugram recorded an air quality index (AQI) of 279, remaining in the “poor” category.

Of the four air quality monitoring stations in the district, three recorded “very poor” air quality levels. The station at Gwal Pahari registered an AQI of 322, the one at Teri Gram recorded 332, and the station at Vikas Sadan logged 349. Only the station in Sector 51 recorded better air, clocking a “moderate” AQI of 124, as of Wednesday evening.

Air quality in Manesar was also “poor”, with an AQI of 251.

Gurugram deputy commissioner Ajay Kumar urged residents to remain vigilant and take necessary precautions. “Stay indoors as much as possible and minimise travel to avoid exposure to cold winds. Keep yourself updated on weather conditions through radio and other media. Take special care of the elderly and children, and check on neighbours who live alone, particularly senior citizens,” he said.