Delhi continued to be under the grip of harsh winter conditions on Thursday, January 15, as a cold wave and dense fog continued across the national capital. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a nowcast warning early Thursday morning, predicting very dense fog over most parts of Delhi. The affected areas were listed as Central, New Delhi, North-East, North-West, South South-East, West Districts and Shahdara. Visibility drops sharply across the city, impacting road and air movement during the early hours.
Visibility drops, temperature stays below normal
As per the Met Department, there was dense fog at Palam with visibility reduced to 50 metres, whereas Safdarjung recorded around 100 metres. Across north India, several locations reported very dense fog with zero visibility, especially in parts of Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, underlining the intensity of fog affecting the region.
Visibility (less than 900m) with fog conditions reported at different airports between 0630 Hrs to 0700 Hrs IST of today, 15th Jan 2026 pic.twitter.com/VOfM1KLMHw
— India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) January 15, 2026
IMD forecast for Delhi cold wave
As per the Delhi forecast for the next seven days, the temperatures on January 15 are likely to hover between 21-23 degrees Celsius (maximum) and 3-5 degrees Celsius (minimum). Cold wave conditions are expected to prevail at isolated places, whereas dense fog is expected in morning hours, followed by shallow to moderate fog later in the day.
The cold conditions on Thursday came after Delhi continued to be locked in a cold wave for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday. The capital recorded a maximum temperature of 20 degrees Celsius, about 3.6 degrees below the seasonal average, on Wednesday. Several weather conditions, including Palam, Lodhi Road, Safdarjung, and Ayanagar, recorded temperatures well below normal during the night.
Tuesday had registered as the coldest January morning in three years, with the minimum temperatures dropping to 3 degrees celicus, as reported by PTI.
Delhi AQI today
Delhi’s air quality continued to be under pressure on Thursday morning, as the national capital’s overall Quality Index (AQI) was recorded at 352 at 8 am and was placed under the “very poor” category, as per Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data. Several parts of the city continued to record readings above the 300 marks. Among the locations that reported high AQI levels are Anand Vihar at 345, ITO at 380, RK Puram at 383, Ashok Vihar at 376, and Patparganj at 381.