IMD issues warning for cold wave, dense fog in these states; temperatures likely to drop in Delhi

SEVERAL parts of India will continue to reel under cold wave conditions, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said, while also issuing rain and snowfall warnings for certain regions.

The severe cold wave that has swept across the national capital and neighbouring areas is expected to continue, as the weather agency forecasts cloudy and foggy conditions until tomorrow for Delhi.

Cold day conditions are also likely over Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh on January 6 and 7; in Rajasthan from January 8 to 11; Madhya Pradesh on January 7 and 8; and in Vidarbha, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh from January 6 to 8, 2026.

The IMD has also predicted snowfall over Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Gilgit-Baltistan, Muzaffarabad, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand today.

Meanwhile, a thin layer of fog blanketed Srinagar, the capital of Kashmir, on Tuesday morning as cold wave conditions continued to tighten their grip on the Kashmir Valley.

In southern India, light to moderate rain accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning is likely over Tamil Nadu on January 8 and 9. Heavy rainfall is expected at isolated locations across Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Mahe on January 9 and 10.

The weather department has forecast a gradual drop of 2–3°C in minimum temperatures over north-west India during the next four days. After that, temperatures are expected to remain largely unchanged for the following three days.

A similar fall of 2–3°C is likely across central and eastern India over the next two days, followed by stable conditions for the subsequent five days. No major change in night temperatures is expected in the rest of the country.

Dense fog is very likely at isolated places in Assam and Meghalaya, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura, Odisha, Rajasthan, Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim, Uttarakhand, and west Uttar Pradesh.

Meanwhile, a coldwave alert has also been issued for Jharkhand - where the mercury dropped below 10 degrees Celsius in 10 districts on Tuesday, officials said.

A ‘yellow’ alert has been issued for several districts, including Garhwa, Palamu, Latehar, Lohardaga, Gumla and Chatra, officials said.

They added that cold wave conditions are expected to persist in these districts until January 7.

During the 24 hours ending at 8.30 am, Gumla reported the lowest temperature in the state at 2.2 degrees Celsius, followed by Khunti at 3.7 degrees Celsius and Lohardaga at 3.9 degrees Celsius, according to officials.

Explaining the sudden drop in temperatures, Ranchi Meteorological Centre’s Deputy Director Abhishek Anand said, "The western disturbance winds prevailing in the lower tropospheric levels have caused the drop in the mercury level."