New Delhi: Intense cold coupled with dense fog played havoc in north India today, claiming at least four lives, affecting road and rail traffic, and virtually paralysing flight operations in Delhi, where the mercury dipped to the season's lowest of 4.2 degrees Celsius.
A thick blanket of fog disrupted normal life in vast swathes of north India including in Uttar Pradesh, where three persons were killed and several others injured in separate road accidents in Badaun and Barabanki district, caused due to low visibility.
Flight operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi were virtually paralysed for six hours in the morning, delaying over 173 flights, as visibility dropped below 50 metres mark. Similar situations prevailed in many other airports in the north including in Jaipur, where ten flights including four international services were delayed.
Also Read: Cold wave continues in north; 8 killed in UP
Train services were also affected largely across north India with more than 70 trains running behind schedule by several hours causing great inconvenience to passengers.
In the national capital, the minimum temperature plunged to 4.2 degrees Celsius, the coldest December 22 in the past five years and also the lowest of this season so far.
According to the MeT department, today's minimum was four notches below normal and more then two points less then yesterday's 6.4 degrees Celsius. The maximum was recorded at 15.8 degrees Celsius which too was six notches below normal.
Intense cold conditions also continued in Rajasthan with the mercury dropping at several places and claiming one life in state capital Jaipur. A street-beggar in his 30s was found dead outside Ganesh temple in Chandpole Gate area this morning due to cold weather conditions, police said. Mount Abu was the coldest place in Rajasthan with a low of 2 degrees Celsius.
The winter chill also prompted advance closure of schools in Uttar Pradesh and many other parts of north India.
The Kashmir Valley continued to experience dry and cold weather on the second day of ‘Chillai-Kalan', the 40-day harshest winter period, as the minimum temperatures remained below the freezing point with slight respite from cold conditions at some places.
Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu & Kashmir, recorded a low of minus 1.3 degree Celsius, marginally up from the previous night's minus 1.8 degrees. The famous hill resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir registered a low of minus 3.6 degrees. Gulmarg, the famous ski-resort in north Kashmir, recorded a minimum of minus 2.8 degrees.
The minimum temperature in Leh was recorded at minus 8.8 degrees Celsius, over two degrees down from the previous night's minus 6.0 degrees Celsius. Kargil, also in Ladakh region, registered a slight increase in night temperature and settled at minus 9.2 degrees.
‘Chillai-Kalan', which begins with Winter Solstice on December 21, is the period when the chances of snowfall are maximum and most frequent. Weather remains cold during this period as day temperature also dips drastically, freezing most of water bodies, including the famous Dal Lake in Srinagar.
Meanwhile, high altitude tribal areas of Himachal Pradesh and mountain passes experienced another spell of moderate snowfall while icy winds swept the region.
Intense cold wave conditions continued in the state as mercury stayed below freezing point in tribal areas and higher hills while it rose marginally to stay a few notches above freezing point in mid and lower hills.
Dhauladhar ranges in Kangra, Churdhar ranges in Sirmaur, and Rohtang and Chansel passes and other high altitude areas had another spell of moderate snowfall today.
Minimum temperatures dropped by a few notches in tribal areas and Keylong and Kalpa recorded a low of minus 4.3 and minus 0.6 degrees, respectively. Manali shivered at zero degree against minus 3.5 degrees yesterday. The minimum in Dharamsala was 5.2 degrees and in Shimla 6.2 degrees.
Cold weather conditions continued to prevail in most places in Punjab and Haryana, where fog threw normal life out of gear. Karnal in Haryana was the coldest place in the state recording a minimum temperature of 3.6 degrees Celsius.
Hisar also reeled under intense cold recording a low of 5.6 degrees. Chandigarh's night temperature settled at 7.6 degrees Celsius, according to the MeT department.
In Punjab, Amritsar recorded a low of 5.4 degrees, while Patiala's minimum settled at 5.8 degrees Celsius.
In Uttar Pradesh, where three persons—Moolchand (50), Shishupal (34) and Sushil (14) -- died in separate road accidents caused due to low visibility, Meerut recorded the lowest temperature at 2.3 degrees Celsius.
