No let up in freezing cold in Haryana, Punjab

There was no let up in the freezing cold sweeping Haryana and Punjab where Hisar was shivering at 0.2 degrees Celsius and Bathinda at 0.5 degrees.

Hisar in Haryana and Bathinda in Punjab were the coldest places as night temperatures dropped seven notches below normal limits.

As the cold wave further tightened its grip, Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states, recorded the season's coldest night of the season so far at 2.9 degrees Celsius, a Meteorological Department official said here.

Among other places in the region which were under the grip of bone-chilling cold included Narnaul, Sirsa and Rohtak in Haryana, where night temperatures settled at 1.5 deg C, 1.8 deg C and 1.6 deg C, respectively. Adampur in Punjab reeled at a minimum temperature of 1 deg C.

Karnal, Bhiwani and Ambala, too, were under the influence of piercing cold recording respective minimums of 3.8 deg C, 3.3 deg C and 3.7 deg C.

Among other places in Punjab where night temperatures hovered below normal included Ludhiana (4.4 deg C), Amritsar (4.4 deg C), Patiala (4.8 deg C), Halwara (4 deg C), Faridkot (4.7 deg C) and Pathankot (4.3 deg C).

The maximum temperatures in the two states including Chandigarh have for the last over a week hovered several notches below normal and settling in the range of 8-12 degrees Celsius, even colder than many places in the neighbouring hill state of Himachal Pradesh.

Meanwhile, the MeT official said that fog also continued to engulf most places in Haryana and Punjab reducing visibility levels in the morning.

The cold wave conditions are likely to continue for the next two days.

A Chandigarh-based elderly resident Rajesh Kumar said that in the past several years he has not witnessed such a harsh winter in the plains.

"We used to often hear about Chillai-Kalan', the 40-day period of harshest winter in Kashmir, but it seems this year we are having a 'Chillai-Kalan' in Chandigarh and other places in the plains of northern region.

"Apart from the bone-chilling minimum temperatures, the day-temperatures too have drastically fallen. Besides, the dense fog at many places in adding to the severe chill," he said.