Teeth-biting, Shivering: Cold Wave Conditions Grip North India, Mercury Drops 6.8 Degrees Blow Normal | Top Points

Several parts of the national capital experienced very dense to dense fog conditions while the minimum temperature settled at 9.4 degrees on Friday morning. An orange alert has been issued for Delhi for the day with shallow to moderate fog and cold day conditions likely at a few places, officials said.

Northern India regions shivered under cold day conditions on Thursday as the maximum temperature remained in the 12-18 degrees Celsius range, which is several notches below the season’s usual.

The weather department noted that continuous cloud cover and absence of sunlight over the regions led to the maximum temperature in parts of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and north Madhya Pradesh dropping way below normal, in the range of 2-6 degrees Celsius.

A cold day is declared if the maximum temperature dips between 4.5-6.4 degrees below the normal temperature for the season. While a severe cold day is declared if temperatures are 6.5 degrees below normal, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

Mercury in Delhi touched a maximum of 12.5 degrees Celsius on Thursday — 6.8 degrees below normal — as per the Safdarjung observatory.

TOP UPDATES

1. Northern India experienced severe cold day conditions as the maximum temperature remained several notches below season normal.
2. Maximum temperatures in parts of Haryana, Punjab, Delhi, UP, and north MP dropped below the normal, in the range of 2-6 degrees Celsius.
3. Haryana’s Hissar recorded 12 degrees Celsius, which was 6.8 degrees below normal for the season, while Punjab’s Patiala recorded 10.5 degrees.
4. People in Kota, Rajasthan were shivering at 14.1 degrees Celsius, which was eight notches below normal, while MP’s Bhopal clocked a maximum of 16.7 degrees Celsius — 7.3 degrees below normal.
5. The maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to rise by 2-4 degrees Sunday onwards, the weather department noted.
6. Parts of MP, Rajasthan, southern Haryana and southern UP are expected to get light to very light rainfall early next week.
7. IMD has also predicted dense to very dense fog in parts of Punjab, Haryana, and north Rajasthan. On Thursday, at least 26 trains approaching Delhi were delayed due to low visibility conditions.
8. Flight operations were also impacted as Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar was forced to cancel his programme in the Jammu city as the aircraft which was ferrying him could not land at the Jammu airport.
9. Meanwhile Kashmir got some respite from the intense cold wave days as the minimum temperature rose slightly across the valley. The minimum stayed several degrees below freezing point, as several bodies including the famous Dal Lake, froze overnight.
10. Pahalgam in south Kashmir’s Anantnag recorded a minimum temperature of minus 5.1 degrees Celsius, while Gulmarg resort in north Kashmir clocked a low of minus 4.2 degrees Celsius.

(With PTI inputs)