Hot and humid days ahead, mercury to rise from Friday

KOLKATA: The Regional Meteorological Centre in Alipore predicted that the mercury would start soaring up from Friday. During the night hours, the temperature will dip slightly. But, during the day time people in the city may experience hot and humid conditions.

"The rise in the temperature will eventually set the stage for the winter to cease. The easterly wind will make its presence feel in the next couple of days as people may witness a sudden rise in the temperature. The lowest temperature will take an upward turn from Friday. The temperature may rise by 4-5 degrees in the next 48 hours.

As a result, the people in Kolkata and adjoining districts will experience comparatively hot and humid conditions. Some of the South Bengal districts will see cloudy atmosphere on the weekend. There is no prediction of rainfall yet," said a weather official.

The city registered its lowest temperature at 14.6 degree Celsius on Wednesday, 3 notches below normal. The highest temperature remained around 27.9 degree Celsius. The highest humidity level touched 98 per cent. No rainfall has been traced in South Bengal on Wednesday.

The MeT office also predicted that the northern states will receive snowfall and rain in the next couple of days. People in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and some other states in the North will witness snowfall as per the available information. Punjab, Hariyana, Delhi and some parts of Uttarakhand will experience foggy mornings in the next couple of days.

The winter has set in little late in Bengal. People failed to experience winter spells in the first half of December but the winter chill made its presence felt in February as the temperature dropped below 10 in several South Bengal districts.