Early morning dense fog in north India kills 4 in vehicle collisions as cold conditions intensify

New Delhi, Jan 10 (PTI) Cold conditions intensified in parts of north India on Saturday, with many parts blanketed by thick fog that led to several vehicle collisions, leaving four dead and about 30 injured.

The mercury in the Kashmir Valley, which has been experiencing sub-zero temperatures for some days now, dipped further and Delhi recorded the coldest morning of the ongoing winter season.

It was biting cold in many parts of Punjab, with the temperature dipping to a bone-chilling 1.1 degrees Celsius in Hoshiarpur, the India Meteorological Department said.

Fog reduced visibility in the morning in some other places in Punjab and neighbouring Haryana.

A car and bus collided on the Hoshiarpur-Dasuya road here Saturday morning, killing four men and injuring one person. The accident occurred due to poor visibility caused by dense fog, the police said.

Amritsar recorded a low of 1.3 degrees Celsius, Bathinda 3.4 degrees Celsius, Faridkot 3.2 degrees Celsius, Patiala 4.4 degrees Celsius and Gurdaspur 3.2 degrees Celsius.

Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states, also experienced a cold night with a minimum temperature of 4 degrees Celsius.

In Haryana, Narnaul recorded a low of 3.5 degrees Celsius, Hisar 4 degrees Celsius, Karnal 4.4 degrees Celsius, Bhiwani 4.5 degrees Celsius, Rohtak 5 degrees Celsius and Ambala 6 degrees Celsius.

In Rajasthan, about 25 people were injured after a bus collided with a pickup vehicle due to low visibility caused by dense fog on the Jaipur-Delhi NH-48, police said. In a similar incident in Jaisalmer, a bus collided with a police vehicle, injuring four police personnel, including a station house officer.

Cold wave conditions continued to grip several parts of the state, with dense fog reported at many places on Saturday morning and minimum temperatures remaining well below normal.

According to the Jaipur Met office, Dausa recorded the lowest minimum temperature at 3.5 degrees Celsius. Alwar recorded 3.6 degrees, Srganganagar 3.9 degrees, Nagaur 4.2 degrees, Fatehpur 4.4 degrees, Pilani and Jaisalmer 4.5 degrees each and Lunkaransar 4.6 degrees Celsius.

The department said moderate to dense fog prevailed at several places across the state during the morning hours, while cold day conditions were recorded in many areas. In most parts of Rajasthan, the minimum temperature remained below 10 degrees Celsius.

The weather office said that dry weather is likely to prevail over most parts of the state during the coming week. However, dense fog and cold day conditions are expected to continue over parts of western, northern and eastern Rajasthan in the next few days.

It further said that minimum temperatures in the northern parts of the state may fall further, intensifying cold wave conditions in the region.

Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 4.2 degrees Celsius, which was 2.7 notches below the season's average, and this season's lowest.

The previous coldest January day in recent years was recorded on January 15, 2024, when the minimum temperature had plunged to 3.3 degrees Celsius, triggering cold wave conditions across the national capital.

The air quality was recorded in the 'very poor' category at 9 am on Saturday, with an Air Quality Index (AQI) reading of 366, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed.

Temperatures dipped further across the Kashmir Valley, with Shopian recording a low of minus 8.2 degrees Celsius, and clear skies leading to the freezing of parts of the Dal Lake and other water bodies during the ongoing ‘Chilla-i-Kalan’, officials said.

Srinagar recorded a minimum temperature of minus 5.7 degrees Celsius on Friday night, up from the previous night's minus 6.0 degrees Celsius, which was the coldest in the city so far this season, they said. The minimum temperature in the city was 3.8 degrees below the seasonal average.

The bone-chilling cold conditions led to the freezing of the parts of several water bodies, including the interiors of the Dal Lake here.

In south Kashmir, Shopian town was the coldest across the valley, as the mercury settled at minus 8.2 degrees Celsius. Pahalgam tourist resort, which also serves as one of the base camps for the annual Amarnath yatra, registered a low of minus 7.8 degrees Celsius.

The night temperature in the popular ski resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir's Baramulla district settled at a low of minus 6.8 degrees Celsius, up from the previous night's minus 7.2 degrees Celsius, they said.

The tourist resort of Sonamarg in central Kashmir's Ganderbal district recorded a minimum temperature of 6.3 degrees Celsius.

Qazigund, the gateway town of the valley, registered a low of minus 6.3 degrees Celsius, the season's coldest, officials said. Kokernag recorded a low of minus 4.0 degrees Celsius, and Kupwara minus 6.1 degrees Celsius, they added.

The IMD has said the weather is likely to remain dry but cloudy till January 21.

In Jharkhand, mercury level plummeted to below 10 degrees Celsius in eight districts, the weather office said.

Khunti recorded the lowest temperature in the state at 1.4 degrees Celsius, followed by Daltonganj (3.5) and Bokaro Thermal (6.1), it said.

According to an IMD bulletin, a 'yellow' alert (isolated cold wave) has been issued in the districts of Gumla, Ranchi, and Khunti. Cold wave conditions in these districts are likely to prevail until 8.30 am on Sunday, the bulletin said.

"North-westerly to northerly wind prevails in the tropospheric levels over Jharkhand, causing the cold wave conditions in several districts," said Abhishek Anand, deputy director of the IMD centre in Ranchi.

"The minimum temperature is likely to increase by 2-3 degrees Celsius over the next 48 hours," he said.

In the past 24 hours, the minimum temperature in Ranchi was 6.4 degrees Celsius, Chaibasa (6.6) and Jamshedpur (8.0).

Districts which recorded sub-10 degree Celsius temperatures were Khunti, Gumla, Latehar, Pakur, Daltonganj (Palamu), Lohardaga, Ranchi and Bokaro, the IMD said.

Meanwhile, in southern India, minimum temperatures in parts of Karnataka were below normal by three to six degrees Celsius, while fog was reported at isolated locations.

Cold wave conditions, which were observed in Vijayapura during the past 24 hours, could continue for another day in parts of north interior Karnataka.

A 'depression' over the Bay of Bengal is very likely to cross the north Sri Lanka coast on Saturday, which could cause "heavy rainfall" at isolated places over in Tamil Nadu and affect rain patterns in Karnataka.

According to a bulletin issued by the IMD, the depression was located about 50 km southeast of Mullaittivu, 60 km northeast of Trincomalee and 140 km southeast of Jaffna in Sri Lanka, besides being 250 km southeast of Karaikal and 450 km south-southeast of Chennai. PTI TEAM SKY SKY