Sharp chill sweeps north India day after snowfall, rain; major roads in hills remain blocked
New Delhi: Minimum temperatures dropped sharply across north India, a day after the hills witnessed widespread snowfall and rains lashed the plains of the region. Several key roads in Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh remained closed for the second consecutive day, affecting traffic and the movement of goods.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast dense to very dense fog in isolated pockets of Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab on January 25 and 26, while shallow to moderate fog is likely in Delhi in the morning on Sunday.
The national capital saw a sharp fall in the minimum temperatures following the spell of rain, with the city’s base weather station, Safdarjung, recording a minimum temperature of 7.6 degrees Celsius, 0.1 degrees above the season's normal. This marked a sharp fall from Friday's low of 13.7 degrees Celsius, which was the highest in four years.
Ayanagar registered the lowest minimum temperature in Delhi on Saturday at 6 degrees Celsius.
Delhi saw improvement in the Air Quality Index (AQI) on Saturday, with a reading of 176 in the 'moderate' category, according to the Sameer app.
An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered 'good', 51 to 100 'satisfactory', 101 to 200 'moderate', 201 to 300 'poor', 301 to 400 'very poor', and 401 to 500 'severe', the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data shows.
The IMD has predicted a partly cloudy sky, with minimum and maximum temperatures likely to be below normal in Delhi on Sunday.
Weather conditions in Kashmir improved on Saturday, allowing flight operations to resume at the Srinagar airport, even as night temperatures stayed well below the freezing point across the valley.
Gulmarg, in north Kashmir's Baramulla district, was the coldest place in Jammu and Kashmir at minus 12 degrees Celsius, followed by Sonamar, in Ganderbal district, at minus 10.5 degrees Celsius, while Srinagar recorded a low of minus 1.4 degrees Celsius.
The valley is currently under the grip of ‘Chilla-i-Kalan’, the 40-day harsh winter period.
The meteorological department has forecast light rain and snow at isolated places in Kashmir on Saturday and Sunday. Another western disturbance is likely to impact Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, under the influence of which, light to moderate rain/snow is likely at most places.
Massive road clearance operations were also underway to restore traffic on the Srinagar–Jammu National Highway and other key roads, which remained closed for the second day on Saturday due to slippery conditions at different stretches following snowfall, officials said.
Hundreds of commuters were evacuated to safety and provided food and shelter by the Army, police and civil administration after they were left stranded on the 270-km Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country, the officials said.
Himachal Pradesh also shivered under intense cold amid overcast conditions on Saturday. The hill state, a day after heavy snowfall, blocked traffic movement on more than 680 roads, including two national highways.
Officials said 5,775 transformers were affected by snowfall, leaving thousands of households without electricity.
Minimum temperatures in most places of the state on Saturday were normal for this time of the year, with Kukumseri in the Lahaul and Spiti district recording a low of minus 7.2 degrees Celsius.
The weather department said that heavy snowfall is very likely in the higher reaches of the state on January 25, and a yellow warning for dense fog and cold wave conditions has been issued for multiple districts.
Parts of Rajasthan recorded near-freezing night temperatures, with Lunkaransar in Bikaner emerging as the coldest in the state at 0.3 degrees Celsius.
Mount Abu, the state's only hill station, recorded a minimum temperature of 0.6 degrees Celsius, while Jaipur logged a minimum of 9.4 degrees Celsius on Saturday.
The Met department has forecast a further dip in temperatures in Rajasthan due to cold northerly winds.
Cold conditions also intensified across Punjab and Haryana, with Bathinda emerging as the coldest in both states, recording a low of 0.8 degrees Celsius, five degrees below normal.
Hisar in Haryana registered a minimum temperature of 1.6 degrees Celsius, while Faridkot and Ferozepur in Punjab reeled under intense cold, recording minimum temperatures of 1 degree and 1.6 degrees Celsius, respectively.
Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states, recorded a minimum temperature of 5.3 degrees Celsius.
The IMD has predicted a thunderstorm accompanied by lightning in Tamil Nadu on Saturday and Sunday and in Kerala on January 26. It has also forecast a gradual rise in minimum temperature by 2-4 degrees Celsius in Gujarat over the next three days.
It further predicted dense fog in isolated pockets of West Bengal and Sikkim on January 25 and 26.
