Last Update: December 20, 2022, 13:42 IST
Passengers waiting for a bus in the foggy morning at Rajiv Chowk in Delhi on Tuesday morning. (PTI photo)
Severe cold wave warning has been issued in Punjab, Haryana and North Rajasthan. The latest forecast also rules out any rainy days in the northern region until at least 24 December, and the weather is likely to remain dry
Severe winter has returned in Uttar Pradesh India A thick layer of fog enveloped the Indo-Gangetic plains on Tuesday. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the condition is likely to continue for at least the next three days, with high humidity and light winds blowing over the region.
The entire region from Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh to the national capital Delhi and Uttar Pradesh is now covered with fog as can be seen from the satellite images. The fog was so dense that the visibility level in Punjab’s Bathinda district was near zero on Tuesday morning, while it was 25 meters in Patiala, Amritsar, Delhi’s Palam and Lucknow.
Delhi, which witnessed the most pleasant days this December, is now witnessing the first glimpse of winter. While the sky is mostly clear, the minimum temperature in the capital has dropped by 6-7 °C (1-2 °C below normal), and the day temperature is settling at 21-23 °C, which is still above normal. A little more.
Cold Days Ahead in Punjab, Haryana
The foggy conditions coupled with a drop in the mercury levels in the northwest region, which has not witnessed such a cold winter so far. Dry north/northwesterly winds blowing from the Himalayas are bringing down the temperature.
The hill state of Himachal Pradesh is already in the grip of cold wave and it is likely to remain so for the next few days as well. Sub-zero temperatures are being recorded in the higher reaches of Kinnaur and Manali, while hill stations like Shimla and Dalhousie are recording temperatures around 5-6 degrees Celsius.
The Meteorological Department has also issued a cold wave warning which is likely to become severe in parts of Punjab, Haryana and North Rajasthan in the next 4-5 days. Punjab’s Bathinda recorded the day’s lowest minimum temperature of 3.4 degrees Celsius on Monday.
The IMD declares a cold wave in the plains when the night temperature is 4.5 to 6.4 degrees Celsius below normal.
Winter rain won’t come soon
Unlike the southern peninsula, where there has been a sharp drop in temperatures during the last week due to rains, temperatures in northwest India have been above normal to normal so far. Though the exact reason is yet to be ascertained, meteorologists mainly attributed it to the lack of active Western Disturbances during this season. These systems are known to bring snowfall in the hills and rain in the plains during the winter months.
The latest forecast also rules out any rainy days in the northern region until at least December 24, and the weather is likely to remain dry. No major change is expected in the minimum temperature during the next few days.
Meanwhile, Ladakh recorded the lowest minimum temperature of -19.8 degrees Celsius on Monday, followed by Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir at -5.4 degrees Celsius and higher reaches of Himachal Pradesh at -5.9 degrees Celsius.
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