Cold wave abates marginally in North, 1 dies in UP

There was a slight reprieve from the cold wave conditions in the north as mercury soared in most parts of the region on Sunday due to a clear sky and a warm sun, even as a homeless person died due to the harsh weather in Uttar Pradesh.

Delhiites woke up to a relatively warmer morning on Sunday as the minimum temperature rose to 7.6° Celsius, one notch above the season’s normal. It was hovering around 5° for the past few days.

The weatherman predicted partly cloudy sky for the day with maximum temperature reaching up to 22° Celsius.

Shallow fog occurred in many of parts of the city with visibility around 600 meters at 5.30 am and 800 meters at 8.30 am, a meteorological department official said.

Most parts of UP reeled under cold wave and foggy conditions.

The administration in Lucknow on Saturday directed to close all the schools till January 5 due to the persisting cold wave.

Meanwhile, in west UP’s Muzaffarnagar district, a 45-year-old man was found dead. The man, a beggar, was found dead on Saturday evening at Railway Road of the city and the police said that he apparently died due to the cold wave.

Respite from cold conditions for the residents in Kashmir continued for the second consecutive day on Sunday as the mercury went up further by several degrees.

Srinagar recorded a low of minus 0.9°, an increase of over 2° from Saturday night’s minus 3.2°, a spokesman of the MET department said.

He said Qazigund, the gateway town to Kashmir Valley, recorded a low of minus 2.2° as compared to Saturday night’s minus 4.0°. The tourist resort of Pahalgam, which serves as a base camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a low of minus 1.9° Celsius, an increase of nearly 3° from minus 4.4° Celsius on Saturday night.

In Leh, mercury went up by over five notches from Saturday night’s minus 10.1° to settle at minus 4.7°.

Severe cold wave conditions also abated in Rajasthan, giving respite to people. However, Sikar and Churu shivered at 4.5° on Saturday night and fog continued to disturb train services.

Due to a fresh western disturbance from Pakistan and Afghanistan, cold wave abated and mercury rose by 1 to 5° at many places in the state in last 24 hours, an MeT report said.

The people of Jaipur heaved a sigh of relief with mercury rising to 8°, about two notches more than it was on Saturday, an MeT department report said.

Due to fog in north-eastern Rajasthan and adjoining states of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, about 10 trains of North Western Railway were running late, a railway spokesman said.