Several states in grip of cold wave; North to witness chilly new year eve

The India Meteorological Department said the mercury may drop to three degrees Celsius on New Year's Eve

North India is bracing for a chilly New Year eve as the night temperatures in the region are expected to fall by up to five notches over the next three days, the IMD said on Monday, when a cold wave swept across several states.

A cold wave is likely to grip parts of Delhi also over the next four days as frosty winds from the Himalayas have started blowing towards the plains, weather officials said.

The minimum and maximum temperatures in the national capital settled at 5.6 degrees Celsius and 20.9 degrees Celsius, respectively.

The IMD said cold wave to severe cold wave conditions are also likely in isolated pockets over Uttar Pradesh. Isolated cold wave conditions are likely over Bihar, Jharkhand, Gangetic West Bengal and Odisha during December 30-31.

".fall in minimum temperatures by 3-5 degrees Celsius (likely) over northwest India during the next 3 days (29th-31st December)," the IMD said. There will be a slight rise in the temperature by 2-3 degrees Celsius thereafter.

An orange colour-coded warning has also been issued to the states.

The IMD said cold wave to severe cold wave conditions are likely in isolated pockets over Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi and north Rajasthan during December 28-30.

"Dense to very dense fog in isolated pockets are likely over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and west Uttar Pradesh in the morning hours from December 31 to January 2," the IMD added.

Meanwhile, the minimum temperature dropped by 4 to 5 notches in most parts of Rajasthan due to rain and snowfall in the Himalayan region, a Meteorological department official said on Monday.

Radheshyam Sharma, the Director of Meteorological Department, said the present effect of conditions during winter is likely to continue till December 31 in the state.

Due to an active Western Disturbance in north India over the last two days along with rains and snowfall in many parts of north India, the minimum temperature dropped by four to five notches in most parts of the state, he said.

The lowest minimum temperature in the plains on Monday was 0.6 degree Celsius in Churu in western Rajasthan followed by 1 degree Celsius in Bhilwara in eastern Rajasthan, Sharma said.

The lowest minimum overall was minus 0.2 degrees Celsius in Mount Abu.

The Met department has issued an alert for cold weather conditions in the districts of Jaipur, Ajmer, Kota and Bharatpur division during the next two days.

In Uttar Pradesh, very light rain and thundershowerswere witnessed at isolated places over western parts, but there was no major fluctuation in day temperatures in the state on Monday, according to the weather department.

The weather remained dry over eastern Uttar Pradesh and the mercury hovered around normal levels in all divisions of the state, it said.

The lowest temperature in the state was recorded at 4.1 degrees Celsius at Churk, while Jhansi registered the highest temperature of 27.6 degrees Celsius.

In Jammu and Kashmir, many areas in the higher reaches received fresh snowfall even as there was improvement in the minimum temperature across the Valley, providing some respite from the cold to the residents.

Fresh snowfall was recorded in many areas in the higher reaches of the valley and the Jammu region during the night, the officials said.

They said the famous ski-resort of Gulmarg, in north Kashmir, recorded two inches of snowfall, while Pahalgam resort, in the south, and Sonamarg resort, in central Kashmir, each received around an inch of snowfall.

Many areas in the Jammu region also received fresh snowfall, they said.

Meanwhile, piercing cold weather conditions prevailed in most parts of Punjab and Haryana which received overnight rains.

Fog reduced visibility in the morning at various places in Punjab including Ludhiana, Patiala, Bathinda, Faridkot, Adampur and Halwara, they said.