Fog envelops Srinagar, Jammu; visibility reduces to 25m

Visibility dropped to zero in Bhatinda and Agra around 5.30 am, while visibility dropped to 25 m in Jammu, Ganganagar, Chandigarh, Ambala, Patiala, Bareilly, Lucknow, Sultanpur, Gorakhpur and Bhagalpur, and to 50m in Hissar, Delhi-Palam, Baharaich, Gaya, Purnea and Kailashahar.

Visibility reduced to 25m as fog enveloped the twin cities of Jammu and Srinagar on Tuesday. However, there was no disruption in the flight schedule at the Srinagar airport.

The night temperature continued to improve for the second day, climbing to 1.8°C in Srinagar (3.7 degrees above normal) and 6.6°C in Jammu against 5.2°C the previous night. (Waseem Andrabi /HT)

Meteorological department director Sonan Lotus said that visibility dropped to zero in Bhatinda and Agra around 5.30 am, while visibility dropped to 25 m in Jammu, Ganganagar, Chandigarh, Ambala, Patiala, Bareilly, Lucknow, Sultanpur, Gorakhpur and Bhagalpur, and to 50m in Hissar, Delhi-Palam, Baharaich, Gaya, Purnea and Kailashahar.

An airport official said, “While the visibility was low due to fog, there was no disruption in flights.”

The night temperature continued to improve for the second day, climbing to 1.8°C in Srinagar (3.7 degrees above normal) and 6.6°C in Jammu against 5.2°C the previous night. The tourist resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir recorded a low of minus 3.2°C, while the northern ski resort of Gulmarg recorded a low of minus 4.4°C. After light to moderate rainfall and snowfall in the mountains on Sunday afternoon, the weather over the last 24 hours remained dry.

The IMD has predicted intermittent snowfall and rain in the coming days, primarily between January 12 and 13.“On January 12 and 13, there is around 75% chance of moderate snowfall and rainfall in plains of Jammu with chances of isolated heavy snowfall over higher reaches,” Lotus said, adding that precipitation is likely to affect surface and air transport in the Himalayan region.

Winter in Kashmir is classified into three stages – 40-day intense period from December 21(chillai kalan), followed by 20 more days of less intense (chillai khurd), and finally 10 days of mild cold (chillai bache). At present, the Valley is in the grip of chillai kalan.