As the western disturbance begins to retreat and chilling northeasterly winds from the snow-clad mountains make their way towards the plains, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted cold wave conditions over Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh from Sunday onwards.
Delhi, which is undergoing its longest cold wave spell in a decade, will also see temperatures drop from Sunday, with severe cold wave conditions likely to hit the national capital from January 15 to 18. The weather department said that severe cold wave conditions are also likely over parts of Rajasthan from Sunday onwards, and over Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh from Monday.
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The Saurashtra and Kutch regions and parts of Karnataka will also witness cold wave conditions on Sunday. Parts of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh are expected to see cold wave conditions next week, as well.
Dense fog is expected during the early morning hours in parts of Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh over the next five days.
Large parts of north and northwest India recorded below-normal maximum and minimum temperatures on most days this month before the western disturbance brought relief, an IMD official told news agency PTI.
In Jammu and Kashmir, three avalanches hit Ganderbal and Bandipora districts on Saturday but no loss of life was reported, according to local authorities. They said avalanche warnings had been issued for 12 districts following moderate to heavy snowfall on Friday.
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Delhi’s neighbouring state Punjab saw the ongoing cold conditions intensify on Saturday, with the mercury dipping at many places. Minimum temperatures hovered close to the freezing point at Bathinda — 0.6 degrees Celsius — and Amritsar — 1.2 degrees Celsius. State capital Chandigarh, however, witnessed a favourable weather with the maximum temperature settling at 13 degrees Celsius, while the minimum temperature was at 11.4 degrees Celsius.
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In Haryana, Ambala recorded a maximum temperature of 14 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperature in Sirsa settled at 17.5 degrees Celsius, 15.5 degrees in Hisar, 14.8 degrees in Rohtak, 14.7 degrees in Bhiwani. In wake of the cold weather, the Haryana government Friday extended the winter holidays in all schools in the state till January 21 in view of prevailing cold weather conditions.
According to the IMD, a cold wave is declared in the plains if the minimum temperature dips to 4 degrees Celsius or when it is 10 degrees and 4.5 notches below normal. A severe cold wave is when the minimum temperature falls to 2 degrees Celsius or the departure from the normal limits is by more than 6.4 notches. A cold day is when the minimum temperature is 10 degrees Celsius or below and the maximum temperature is at least 4.5 notches below normal. A severe cold day is when the maximum temperature is at least 6.5 notches below normal.
Himachal Pradesh witnessed snowfall at various places — 23 cm of snow in Manali, 16 cm each in Khadrala and Shillaro, 12 cm in Kufri, 10 cm in Bharmour, 6 cm each in Shimla and Gondla, 4 cm each in Dalhousie and Kalpa and 3 cm each in Hansa and Keylong, the Met data showed. The weather station in Shimla has predicted dry weather in the region till Wednesday and cautioned of dense fog and cold waves in the low hills till Tuesday.
In Jammu and Kashmir, night temperatures settled below the freezing point across the Valley. Srinagar recorded a low of minus 0.1 degrees Celsius on Friday night. The minimum in Kupwara, a frontier district, settled at minus 3.6 degrees Celsius. Pahalgam in Anantnag district, registered a low of minus 5.9 degrees Celsius. The minimum temperature at Gulmarg in Baramulla district fell over 10 notches from minus 0.6 degrees Celsius to settle at minus 11 degrees, making it the coldest recorded place in Jammu and Kashmir.
