Icy winds sweep north India

Mercury dipped in many parts of north India as icy winds swept across the region today, even though fog affected road and rail traffic in some areas.
In the national capital, it was a bright and sunny day but icy winds swept the city bringing the minimum temperature down to 7.9 degrees Celsius. Yesterday, it was recorded at 10 degrees. The maximum today settled at 18 degrees Celsius, four notches below normal.
Early morning fog affected traffic movement in some areas in Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana. Some trains were running late in the region while flight operations were hampered in Chandigarh airport due to reduced visibility.

In Jammu and Kashmir, the famous ski-resort of Gulmarg experienced the coldest night of this winter with a minimum of minus 10.6 degrees. Night temperatures in the Kashmir Valley and Ladakh region too dipped further below the freezing point.
Srinagar had a low of minus 2.3 degrees, compared to the previous night's 2.2. Kupwara in north Kashmir, which recorded a low of minus 1.4 degrees Celsius yesterday, registered a dip as well with the night temperature settling at minus 4.2.
The night temperature fell by over three degrees in Leh town to settle at minus 16.4 degrees Celsius. In Kargil, the minimum temperature decreased by eight degrees from minus 8 degrees to settle at minus 16 degrees.

Meanwhile, icy winds sweeping through parts of Rajasthan for the fourth consecutive day today affected normal life while the state's sole hill station Mount Abu experienced the mercury at the freezing point last night.

The upper layer of Nakki Lake in Mount Abu showed frozen patches and trees bore icicles. In the plains, people in Bikaner shivered at 2.4 degrees Celsius. Jaipur experienced a cold night with a minimum temperature of 4.3 degrees Celsius.
Sriganganagar recorded a minimum of 3.3 degrees Celsius, followed by Jaislamer 4.6, Udaipur 5, Churu 5.4, Barmer 7, Jodhpur 7.5, and Kota 8.2 degrees Celsius.
Freezing cold wave swept across Amritsar as the minimum temperature plummeted to minus 1 degree Celsius with other parts of Punjab and Haryana also reeling under biting chill.

As against yesterday's low of 5.2 degrees Celsius, Amritsar recorded the season's coldest night so far below the freezing point. Chandigarh, where hazy weather prevailed this morning, recorded a low of 7.7 degrees while Ludhiana's minimum settled at 7 degrees Celsius.