Piercing cold sweeps parts of Punjab, Haryana; Narnaul coldest at 2.5 deg C

After hovering close to normal limits for a few days, minimum temperatures dropped by few notches across Punjab and Haryana on Wednesday, with Narnaul reeling at 2.5 degrees Celsius.

Fog led to reduced visibility at several places, including Chandigarh, Ambala, Hisar, Karnal, Amritsar, Ludhiana and Bathinda.

Narnaul in Haryana was the coldest place in the two states recording a night temperature of three degrees below normal, a Meteorological Department official said here.

Hisar also braved the cold weather at a low of 4.6 degrees Celsius, three notches below normal. Ambala recorded a minimum temperature of 7.7 degrees Celsius, while Rohtak and Bhiwani too experienced a cold night at 6 degrees Celsius and 6.3 degrees Celsius respectively.

Karnal's minimum, however, settled within normal limits at 8 degrees Celsius.

In Punjab, Faridkot was the coldest recording a low of 3.6 degrees Celsius. Amritsar (6.4 degrees Celsius), Adampur (6 degrees Celsius), Halwara (7.2 degrees Celsius), Bathinda (5.7 degrees Celsius), Ludhiana (7.6 degrees Celsius) and Gurdaspur (7.1 degrees Celsius) too experienced a cold night.

However, Patiala's minimum settled within normal limits at 8 degrees Celsius.

During the past few days, the minimum temperatures had hovered close to or above normal limits at most places in the two states. However, the day temperatures have registered a sharp fall during the past three to four days settling in the range of 13-17 degrees Celsius.