Cold conditions prevail in hilly areas of J&K, HP

Cold conditions prevailed in the hilly regions of northern states as also in the plains of Punjab and Haryana while the national capital witnessed a relatively warm day.
It was a warm day in the national capital as the maximum temperature rose to settle at 27.4 degrees Celsius while the minimum temperature was recorded at 9.8 degrees Celsius, a MeT department official said.
Humidity level oscillated between 97 and 38 per cent.
The MeT office has predicted overcast conditions for tomorrow with the possibility of haze in the morning.
The night temperature across Kashmir Valley, except at Gulmarg and Pahalgam, settled above the freezing point last night, an official of the Meteorological Department here said.

Srinagar recorded a low of 1.7 degrees Celsius. Qazigund, the gateway town to the Valley, registered a minimum temperature of 0.8 degree Celsius, he said.

The health resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir, which serves as a base camp for the annual Amarnath yatra, recorded a low of minus 3.9 degrees Celsius.
Leh, in Ladakh region, was the coldest recorded place in the state as the mercury there settled at a low of minus 13.3 degrees Celsius.
The nearby Kargil town recorded a low of minus 9.8 degrees Celsius, the official said.
In Himachal Pradesh, the high altitude tribal areas groaned under freezing cold wave conditions as minimum temperatures stayed between minus 12 and minus 18 degrees Celsius while Keylong and Kalpa in tribal Lahaul and Spiti and Kinnaur districts recorded a low of minus 8.7 degrees Celsius and 0.4 degree Celsius, followed by Manali 3.4 degrees Celsius.

The mid and lower hills of Himachal Pradesh had some respite from biting cold wave conditions as day temperatures rose by a few notches.
The local MeT office has predicted rains or snow at isolated places in tribal areas and higher hills as a fresh Western Disturbance, is likely to affect Western Himalaya region from February 16.
Chilly conditions continued in Punjab and Haryana with Amritsar experiencing the coldest temperature in the region at 6 degrees Celsius.
Karnal and Hisar in Haryana recorded minimum temperature at 7.4 and 7.5 degrees Celsius respectively, both two notches below normal, the MeT office said here.

Ludhiana's low settled at 7.6 degrees Celsius followed by 8.5 degrees Celsius at Chandigarh, 9.6 degrees Celsius at Patiala and 10.2 degrees Celsius at Ambala.
At a few places in the region shallow fog and mist in the morning reduced visibility.
The MeT predicted partly cloudy sky with shallow fog in the morning at a few places in the region during the next 48 hours.