Mercury dips to 12.7 0C in Kolkata

kolkata: Mercury in the city dropped to 12.7 degree Celsius on Tuesday which was 1 degree below normal giving a sense of winter chill to the city dwellers. People in the western districts have however been experiencing a shivering cold as the mercury dropped to around 10 degree Celsius.

The Regional Meteorological Centre in Alipore predicted that cold wave condition will prevail in various south Bengal districts particularly the western parts. Western disturbances may have some effects on the weather system in the next week. As a result the mercury may slide up again in the state next week. "Temperature will drop further in the next couple of days. There may be some changes in the weather from Thursday as the western disturbances may have some impact," a weather official said.

On January 2, the mercury dropped by 2 degree Celsius with the lowest temperature registered at 13.5 degree Celsius. The MeT office had said that mercury may go down below 10 degree Celsius in the western districts in the next couple of days as there has been a steady flow of cold north wind.

The western districts like Purulia, Bankura, West Burdwan and Birbhum will witness colder weather.

Mercury may drop to around 9-10 degree Celsius in the western districts. Incidentally, people in Darjeeling witnessed the first snowfall of the season towards the end of last year.

Meteorologists have already predicted that the pollution level in Kolkata may turn this winter worse compared to previous years.