Cold eases marginally in North, one death in Uttar Pradesh

New Delhi: There was a slight reprieve from cold wave conditions in North India as mercury soared in most parts of the region today due to a clear sky and a warm sun, even as a homeless person died due to the harsh weather in Uttar Pradesh.

Delhiites woke up to a relatively warmer morning today as the minimum temperature rose to 7.6 degree Celsius, one notch above the season's normal. It was hovering around five degrees for the past few days. The maximum temperature settled at 22.5 degrees Celsius.

Shallow fog occurred in many of parts of the city with visibility around 600 meters at 5.30 am and 800 meters at 8.30 am, a Meteorological department official.

Most parts of Uttar Pradesh reeled under cold wave and foggy conditions.

The administration in Lucknow yesterday directed to close all the schools till January 5 due to persisting cold wave.

Meanwhile, in west UP's Muzaffarnagar district, a 45-year-old man was found dead. The man, a beggar, was found dead last evening at Railway Road of the city and police said that he apparently died due to cold wave.

Respite from cold conditions for the residents in Kashmir continued for the second consecutive day today as the mercury went up further by several degrees. Srinagar recorded a low of minus 0.9 degree, an increase of over two degrees from the previous night's minus 3.2 degrees, a spokesman of the MeT Department said.

He said Qazigund the gateway town to Kashmir Valley - recorded a low of minus 2.2 degrees as compared to the previous night s minus 4.0 degrees.

The tourist resort of Pahalgam which serves as a base camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a low of minus 1.9 degrees Celsius an increase of nearly three degrees from minus 4.4 degrees Celsius the previous night.

The mercury in Leh, in the frontier Ladakh region, went up by over five notches from the previous night's minus 10.1 degrees to settle at minus 4.7 degrees.

In Himachal Pradesh, cold wave abated to some extent in lower and mid hills as day temperatures rose by a few notches and weather remained dry in the region though piercing cold wave conditions continued in high altitude tribal areas and other higher hills.

Una was hottest during the day with the mercury rising by three degrees to 24.5 while Shimla, Manali and Dharansala were warmer with day temperatures of 16.1, 14.0, and 12.8 degrees Celsius, respectively.

Severe cold wave conditions also abated in Rajasthan giving respite to the people. However, Sikar and Churu shivered at 4.5 degrees last night and fog continued to disturb train services.

Due to a fresh western disturbance from Pakistan and Afghanistan, cold wave abated and mercury rose by one to five degrees at many places in the state since yesterday, an MeT report said.

The people of Jaipur heaved a sigh of relief with the mercury rising to 8 degrees, about two notches more than it was yesterday, a MeT department report said.

Due to fog in north eastern Rajasthan and adjoining states of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, about 10 trains of North Western Railway were running late, a railway spokesman said.

In Punjab and Haryana, cold wave conditions continued though the mercury went up marginally.

Narnaul in Haryana recorded a low of 3.9 degrees Celsius and was the coldest place in the two states.

Yesterday, Naraul recorded a low of 1.5 degrees Celsius. Hisar also shivered at 5.5 degrees, up from yesterday's 3.9 degrees.

Chandigarh experienced a cold night at 6.2 degrees. In Punjab, the minimum temperature at Amritsar was 4.5 degrees, up from yesterday's 3.2, while Patiala registered a low of 7.9 degrees, the MeT department said.