Northwesterly blocked, mercury to rise marginally in next 48 hours

Kolkata: The Regional Meteorological Centre in Alipore has predicted that the temperature in the city might go up slightly in the next 48 hours, due to the northwesterly wind that brings the cold wave, being interrupted due to the western disturbances.

The mercury may again go down by a few notches from Sunday, when the impact of the Western disturbances would be cleared in the state, the weather office said. A low pressure trough that has been created over Bay of Bengal, also has an impact on the temperature in the city.

The uninterrupted flow of the northwesterly brought in the chill in the South Bengal districts, thereby bringing the mercury down by a few notches. It may be mentioned here that on December 9, the city recorded the coldest day of the season when the temperature touched 13.7 degree Celsius.

"We expect the temperature to go up by a few notches in the city and in some South Bengal districts in the next two days. This is due to the formation of low pressure trough over the Bay of Bengal and also because of an interruption in the flow of the northwesterly," a senior official of the Alipore Met office said.

The flow of the northwesterly wind had started being hampered two days ago. The temperature will go up from the next Sunday. The marginal rise and fall of temperature is normal during winter, the weather office said.

The mercury could drop further when the weather stops creating interruption in the flow of northwesterly winds, added the official.

The city dwellers have already started visiting various places after the onset of

winter. Various tourist places in the city including Alipore Zoo, Eco Park, Victoria Memorial and Science City have been witnessing large numbers of people.

Clad in warm clothes, children were seen congregating with their family members in the Zoo from the morning.

It has also been learnt that the temperature will hover between 17-18 degree Celsius, during the next three days.

Some parts of South Bengal districts, including the city, may remain cloudy on Thursday. There is, however, no possibility of rain in the next three days, the weather office predicted.