Chill tightens grip on Chandigarh as fog causes mercury to plunge

Day temperature dropped by eight notches to 14.9 °C, lower than Friday’s night temperature of 15.2°C

Residents woke up to a chilly Sunday morning with cold winds blowing and fog reducing the visibility to 500 metres.

Residents were spotted bundled up in woollens as the day temperature decreased due to fog at Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh on Sunday. (Keshav Singh/HT)

As the haze continued through the day, the maximum temperature plunged by eight notches from 23°C on Saturday to 14.9°C on Sunday, which was seven degrees below normal, as per the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

On the other hand, minimum temperature was six degrees above normal at 13°C. The variance of day and night temperature through Sunday was less than two degrees, which IMD officials said was a rare occurrence.

“Visibility reduced to 500 metres on Sunday morning, which will continue for the next few days as well. Precautions must be taken while driving in the morning and evening, as fog is more common in open spaces like roads, fields and big parks,” said an IMD official.

Moderate fog is declared when visibility goes below 500 metres, dense fog when it’s below 200 metres and very dense fog below 50 metres.

Brace for cold days

The temperature will continue to stay on the lower side in the coming days and cold days may be declared this week, according to IMD Chandigarh director Surender Paul.

Cold days are declared when the minimum temperature goes below 10°C and maximum goes 4.5 to 6.4 notches below normal. If the current conditions continue, severe cold days may also be on the cards when temperature will be 6.5 degrees below normal.

“Owing to the recent rains, humidity will stay high and fog will keep the maximum temperature on the lower side. This week, it is expected to remain around 15°C. Northward winds coming in from Himachal Pradesh where it snowed recently will also cause the temperature to reduce further,” he added.

As no rain was on the cards, the nights will remain clear, which will also bring down the minimum temperature to as low as 7°C in the coming week.

In 2019, the city had recorded a 10-day spell of severely cold days, making it the longest since 2007. The maximum temperature had even dropped to 11.4°C.

In the next three days, the day temperature will remain around 14°C and that at night around 9°C. IMD officials have confirmed that no Western Disturbance has been detected as of now, so the city is likely to stay dry through this week.