North India in the grip of severe cold wave

North India continues to reel under cold wave conditions with most places recording the minimum temperature below the freezing point yesterday.

Cold conditions further intensified in most parts of Himachal Pradesh as mercury dipped, in spite of a sunny day. The high altitude tribal areas and mountain passes reeled under arctic conditions, local MeT office said. 

Keylong recorded the maximum temperature at zero degrees Celsius. All natural sources of water such as lakes, springs, rivulets and tributaries of major snow-fed rivers have frozen. The discharge of water in major rivers has reduced to 25 per cent. Whereas, the power generation of hydropower projects has been reduced to 20 per cent. 

The local MeT office has predicted dry spell in the region for next six days till December 23 with occurrence of frost in lower hills.

In Jammu and Kashmir, weather was dry and shallow fog occurred at isolated places. Normal life came to a virtual standstill in Pahalgam where the mercury was recorded at minus 9 deg C. It was the coldest December night there in the last four years.The Mughal road remained closed for vehicular movement for the eighth consecutive



day after heavy snowfall, while one-way traffic was playing smoothly on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway. The minimum temperature has dipped further from minus 9 Degree Celsius to Minus 10 Degree Celsius yesterday at Leh town. 

Though the sun shone bright in Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Delhi, icy winds pushed the minimum temperature below the normal level. 

In Punjab, Bathinda recorded the lowest temperature at 2 degree C while Chandigarh recorded a minimum of 7 degree C.

Hisar recorded the lowest 4 degree C in Haryana.

Temperatures dropped across Uttar Pradesh overnight with 

Muzaffarnagar recording 5 degree C, the lowest in the state. 

In Rajasthan, Jaipur shivered under severe cold conditions as the minimum temperature in the capital dipped to 8 degrees Celsius. 

Fatahpur of Sikar district quivered at minus 1 degrees Celsius. A dense to very dense fog was also witnessed at a few places in the northern parts of Rajasthan, which affected vehicular traffic. The temperature at all the weather stations in the state was recorded less than 10 degrees Celsius.