North India gets slight respite from severe cold

Cold condition weakened its grip slightly in north India with the absence of rain or snowfall in most parts, but fog enveloped some areas in the region.
Delhiites experienced a chilly and foggy morning which eventually gave way to bright sunshine, to the joys of thousands of people who gathered on either sides of the Rajpath, to cheer the marching contingents on the 65th Republic Day parade.
The maximum temperature settled at a comfortable 20.3 degree Celsius from yesterday's 14.4 degree Celsius and the minimum temperature was recorded at 9.9 degrees Celsius.
However, most parts of Kashmir Valley and Ladakh region witnessed a drop in minimum temperatures, with Srinagar recording a low of 0.9 degree Celsius as against 0.6 degree Celsius the previous night.

The mercury in tourist resort of Pahalgam, settled at a low of minus 5.4 degrees Celsius, and famous ski-resort of Gulmarg registered a low of minus 10.6 degrees Celsius, a drop of over two degrees from minus 8.2 degrees Celsius last night.
Kargil continued to be the coldest recorded place in the state with the mercury settling at minus 19.6 degrees Celsius last night.

Thick fog descended in several parts of Rajasthan this morning, affecting vehicular movement and rail traffic, leading to rescheduling of three trains.
Three trains were rescheduled and eight trains were running late, a North West Railway spokesperson said.

Cold conditions today eased in Punjab and Haryana with minimum temperature going up by few notches above normal at several places in both states. However, dense fog continued to affect normal life at various places in Punjab and Haryana.
Weather was mainly dry over Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, which saw moderate fog at few places.