Cold wave continues; Phulbani in Odisha records 5 deg C

Cold weather conditions continued in parts of the country today with Phulbani in Odisha recording a low of 5 degrees Celsius and Srinagar experiencing a six-year-low night temperature in the month of December.
In the national capital, the sun shone bright throughout the day with the minimum temperature rising to settle at 11.1 degrees Celsius.
The maximum temperature was pegged at 25.3 degrees, four notches above the normal, a Met department official said.
Poor visibility due to fog in northern states delayed the movement of 32 trains while five others were rescheduled.
The humidity level oscillated between 77 and 30 per cent.

In Odisha, most parts of the state reeled under intense cold as the mercury dropped to 5 degrees Celsius at Phulbani in Kandhamal district, making it the coldest place in the state and disrupting normal life.

Minimum temperature in the picturesque Daringibadi in Kandhamal district stood at 7 degrees Celsius, the Meteorological centre here said.
Reports of fish and birds being found dead due to intense cold were received from different parts, particularly from the high-altitude areas of the region.
'Chillai-Kalan' - the harshest 40-day period of winter in Kashmir - marked its beginning with mercury dipping to the season's record low at several places including Srinagar which experienced a six-year-low night temperature in the month of December.

In Srinagar, the mercury plunged further the freezing point to settle at minus 6.5 degrees Celsius.
The cold wave resulted in freezing of some water bodies, including the fringes of the famous Dal Lake here, and residential water supply pipes.
Leh, in Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir, also recorded the coldest night of the season as the mercury there settled at a low of minus 14.9 degrees Celsius.
He said Leh was the coldest recorded place in the state.
In Punjab and Haryana, the minimum temperatures hovered a few notches above normal in most parts of both the states.

Narnaul in Haryana recorded a minimum of 7 degrees Celsius, one notch above normal, the MeT Department official said.
Union Territory Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana, registered a minimum at 8.6 degrees Celsius.
In Punjab, the minimum temperatures at Amritsar, Ludhiana and Patiala were 5 degrees, 9.8 degrees and 8.6 degrees Celsius respectively.
In Rajasthan, Churu was the coldest place in the state, recording a minimum of 5.4 degrees Celsius followed by Sriganganagar which recorded a minimum of 7.4 degrees Celsius.
In Bihar, the minimum temperature in Patna was recorded at 10.5 degrees Celsius whereas the maximum temperature in the state capital was 23.8 degrees Celsius, state Met office bulletin said.