Amid severe cold, 3 dead in Uttarakhand

Three people have died allegedly due to severe cold wave conditions in Uttarakhand's Dehradun district, officials said Sunday.

According to police, three bodies were found from the district's Raiwala area Saturday. Prima-facie it is suspected that they have died due to cold, police said.

Officials said exact cause of the death can only be ascertained after the post-mortem examination.

There was no respite from cold Sunday with higher reaches of the state reeling under sub-zero temperatures. In the plains, the mercury was 2-3 degrees below the normal.

The state capital recorded a minimum temperature of 4.2 degrees Celsius, two notches below the normal, the weather office said.

In Pantnagar, the mercury was at 1.5 degrees Celsius, four degrees below the normal, it said.

The weather office said cold wave conditions are likely to prevail in the plains over the next 24 hours.

Meanwhile, in a relief to those living in night shelters, the state government has decided to make arrangements for bonfires.