North India experiences biting cold, mercury dips below zero in Kashmir

The India Meteorological Department has forecast possibility of light rains on December 5 and 6 in the capital.

Delhiites woke to a chilly Sunday morning with the minimum temperature settling at 8 degrees Celsius, the Kashmir Valley shivered under sub-zero temperatures while Punjab and Haryana also saw the mercury dip as large parts of north India experienced biting cold.

People warm themselves around a fire on a winter morning in New Delhi on November 23.(Raj K Raj/HT PHOTO)

A blanket of haze again enveloped Delhi on Sunday and the visiting Sri Lankan team again brought the smog issue to the centre-stage when they played with masks on and even held up proceedings in the third test match against India.

The India Meteorological Department said pollution levels have spiked due to calm conditions, marked by low wind speed and moisture. The IMD has forecast possibility of light rains on December 5 and 6.

Delhi recorded a high of 23.9 degrees Celsius and a low of 8 degrees Celsius, a MeT department official said.

Meanwhile, Adampur in Punjab recorded a biting 4.9 degrees Celsius minimum temperature as visibility dropped slightly at few places in the state and neighbouring Haryana due to shallow fog and mist.

Among other places in Punjab, Amritsar and Ludhiana, experienced a cold night recording respective lows of 6.6 and 7.2 degrees Celsius, a Meteorological Department official said here.

Patiala, too, was cold at 8.5 degrees Celsius while Bathinda registered a low of 8.1 degrees. Pathankot and Gurdaspur recorded minimum temperatures of 7.3 degrees Celsius and 7.4 degrees Celsius, respectively.

Chandigarh, the common capital of Punjab and Haryana, recorded a low of 8.6 degrees Celsius.

In Haryana, Hisar was the coldest place recording a low of 5.6 degrees Celsius, down four notches against normal limit. Ambala recorded a low of 9.3 degrees Celsius while Rohtak’s minimum was 6.7 degrees.

The Kashmir Valley and the Ladakh region continued to experience sub-zero night temperatures even as the Meteorological Department has forecast a further dip in the mercury owing to the dry weather over the next few days.

The night temperature across Kashmir division, including Ladakh region, stayed below the freezing point last night, an official of the MET department here said.

Last night, Srinagar - the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir - recorded the minimum temperature of minus 2.0 degrees Celsius -down 0.5 degrees from the previous night, the official said.

Gulmarg in north Kashmir recorded a low of minus 2.0 degrees Celsius and the mercury in Qazigund in south Kashmir settled at a low of minus 2.2 degrees Celsius, same as the previous night, the official said.

Kokernag town, also in south Kashmir, recorded a low of minus 1.3 degrees Celsius -slightly down from minus 1.1 degrees Celsius on Saturday, the official said.

Kupwara town in north Kashmir registered a low of minus 2.4 degrees Celsius - down from the previous night’s minus 2.0 degrees Celsius, he said.

The other famous health resort of Pahalgam, which serves as one of the base camps for the annual Amarnath Yatra, registered an increase of nearly a degree in the night temperature as the minimum there settled at minus 1.8 degrees Celsius.

Leh continued to be the coldest recorded place in Jammu and Kashmir, with a low of minus 8.6 degrees Celsius - though a slight increase from the previous night’s minus 8.7 degrees Celsius.

The nearby Kargil town also witnessed a slight increase in the night temperature as the mercury there settled at minus 7.2 degrees Celsius, compared to minus 7.6 degrees Celsius the previous night.