Delhi records low of 8.1 degrees Celsius, air quality ‘poor’

The national capital on Saturday (January 3, 2026) recorded a minimum temperature of 8.1 degrees Celsius, 1.2 notches above the season’s average, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

A cold wave is expected to affect isolated places in New Delhi between January 3 and January 6, it said.

A cold wave is declared when the minimum temperature drops by 4.5 degrees Celsius to 6.5 degrees Celsius below the average temperature.

Safdarjung recorded a minimum temperature of 8.1 degrees Celsius; Palam 7.9 degrees Celsius, 0.9 notches above the seasonal average; Lodhi Road 8 degrees Celsius, two notches above normal; the Ridge 9 degrees Celsius, 1.3 notches above normal; and Ayanagar 6.9 degrees Celsius, 0.1 notches below normal, the IMD data showed.

Relative humidity was recorded at 95% at 9 a.m.

Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 240, in the “poor” category, at 9 a.m., Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 to 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 to 200 ‘moderate’, 201 to 300 ‘poor’, 301 to 400 ‘very poor’, and 401 to 500 ‘severe’.