Delhi experiences coldest December day since 1901; maximum temperature recorded at 9.4°C, says IMD

Vehicles ply on a cold and foggy morning in New Delhi on Monday. PTI[/caption]The India Meteorological Department has records of temperatures since 1901. Kuldeep Srivastava, head of the regional weather forecasting centre, said the day temperature was almost half of what is considered normal for this day of the year."Today was the coldest day recorded for the month of December," Srivastava said.The IMD said the Aya Nagar weather station recorded the day temperature at 7.8°Celsius, followed by Ridge (8.4°), Palam (9°), Lodi (9.2°).The National Capital has been witnessing its most unforgiving winter season in the past 22 years, as the minimum temperature has remained around 3°Celsius for a few days. It has been experiencing "severe cold days" since 14 December, according to IMD.On Saturday, the Safdarjung Observatory, whose reading is considered the official marking for Delhi, recorded the minimum temperature at 2.4°Celsius, the season's lowest. The next day, the average minimum temperature was 3.4°Celsius, four notches below the normal.On Monday, a thick blanket of fog engulfed Delhi and the minimum temperature settled at 2.6°Celsius at Safdarjung observatory.The visibility recorded by Safdarjung and Palam observatories stood at zero metres at 8.30 am.