City shivers, witnesses coldest Nov morning in 3 years at 8.7°C

Delhi woke up to its coldest November morning in three years on Monday as the minimum temperature dipped to 8.7 degrees Celsius, 3.6 degrees below normal, even as the city continued to battle hazardous air quality.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said this is the lowest minimum temperature for the month since November 29, 2022, when the mercury had fallen to 7.3°C. In comparison, the lowest minimum temperature in November stood at 9.2°C in 2023 and 9.5°C in 2024. Humidity in the city was 92 per cent at 8.30 am, with the maximum temperature reaching 27.1°C under mostly clear skies.

Mahesh Palawat, vice-president (Meteorology and Climate Change) at Skymet, said temperatures could fall further once the Capital receives rainfall.

“Till it rains, the day temperature will not fall. After rain, temperatures will dip more rapidly,” he said, adding that light rain in the coming days may make early mornings even colder.

While the cold intensified, Delhi’s pollution levels remained alarming. The city logged an overall air quality index (AQI) of 351, placing it in the ‘very poor’ category, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

Among the 38 monitoring stations, five reported air quality in the ‘severe’ category such as Bawana (419), Narela (405), Jahangirpuri (404), Wazirpur (402) and Rohini (401). Twenty-nine stations recorded ‘very poor’ air quality, with readings between 300 and 400, while four stations fell in the ‘poor’ range.

Delhi