Why isn’t Delhi-NCR getting winter chill yet? Experts reveal reason behind delayed cold wave

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More than a third of December has passed, but the familiar winter chill is still missing from Delhi-NCR. According to new data released by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Thursday, temperatures in the region continue to remain higher than normal.

Between Wednesday and Thursday morning (8.30 am), Lodhi Road recorded a maximum temperature of 25.4°C, which is 2.4°C above average. The minimum temperature stood at 8.6°C, around 0.6°C above normal. This pattern of warmer-than-usual weather has been observed throughout the first two weeks of December and is expected to continue for at least one more week.

"The increase in cold weather depends on Western Disturbances, as these bring dry, cold northwesterly winds to Delhi and parts of Northwest India. There has been no active Western Disturbance this season so far, which is why a cold wave has not yet been recorded in Delhi-NCR and surrounding areas,” Dr Naresh Kumar, a senior scientist at the India Meteorological Department, was quoted by NDTV as saying.

A new Western Disturbance is expected to arrive on December 13, but IMD says it will be weak, bringing only light rain to parts of Jammu and Kashmir and no major dip in temperatures for Delhi.

The IMD expects the minimum temperature in Delhi to rise by another 2-4°C over the next seven days. Night temperatures may settle between 9°C and 10°C, keeping the weather milder than usual for mid-December.

While Delhi enjoys comparatively mild weather, several other regions are facing intense cold. Minimum temperatures have dropped below 5°C in many areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Gilgit-Baltistan and Muzaffarabad.

Cold wave to severe cold wave conditions were also reported in West Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha, while isolated pockets of Punjab, Vidarbha, North Interior Karnataka and Telangana witnessed cold wave conditions over the past 24 hours. For now, Delhi-NCR will have to wait longer for the real winter chill to arrive.