Fog throws life out of gear in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh

Chandigarh: Dense fog continued to play havoc in Punjab, Haryana and UT Chandigarh, affecting normal life with many trains running late even as minimum temperature on Friday rose by a few notches above normal.

A thick blanket of fog enveloped most parts of the region including Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Phagwara, Hisar, Narnaul, Ambala, Karnal as it reduced visibility considerably, throwing life out of gear. Railway traffic was hit at Chandigarh railway station with several trains running late because of fog. Among other trains, Shatabdi (New Delhi-Kalka) was running late by nearly an hour, Himalayan Queen was delayed by 1.15 hours and Lucknow-Chandigarh Superfast was late by over three hours, official sources said here. Meanwhile, UT Chandigarh was the coldest place in the region as it recorded a minimum of 6.4 degrees C, down by one degree below normal. In Punjab, minimum temperature rose by five notches above normal to settle at 9.2 degrees C in Amritsar. Ludhiana and Patiala had a low of 9 degrees C and 10.4 degrees C, up by three notches above normal, respectively. Among other areas in neighbouring state Haryana, Ambala had a low of 9.6 deg C, up by 3 degrees, while Hisar had a minimum of 12 deg C, rising by five degrees. Narnaul and Bhiwani recorded minimums of 11.5 deg C and 10.6 deg C respectively. The MeT Department in its forecast said dense fog will continue in Punjab and Haryana during morning and night, though weather will remain dry.