Rains lash many places in Punjab, Haryana; cold wave continues

Chandigarh: Light to moderate rains lashed many places in Punjab and Haryana on Tuesday, even as biting cold conditions continued to prevail in the region.

Rains lashed Chandigarh, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Pathankot, Mukerian, Hoshiarpur, Phagwara, Jalandhar, Ambala, Panchkula, Yamunanagar, Sonepat, Panipat, Kaithal, Karnal and Kurukshetra, a MeT official said here. Freezing cold swept Narnaul in Haryana which registered a low of 0.5 deg C. Hisar also experienced a cold night at 1.5 deg C, five degrees below normal, while Karnal`s low settled at 2.8 deg C, down four degrees. Ambala recorded a low of 5.1 deg C, while Bhiwani`s minimum settled at 7 deg C. In Punjab, piercing cold continued to sweep Ludhiana and Amritsar, with both towns recording minimum temperatures of 1.6 deg C and 1.8 deg C, respectively. Chandigarh, too, had a cold night at 5.6 deg C. After days of sunny weather here, the weather was inclement here today. Meanwhile, according to agriculture experts, the current spell of rains have brought cheers to farmers, especially potato growers. The winter rain is considered highly beneficial for crops like wheat, peas, mustard and potatoes.