Fog envelopes northern states; wet weather with snow forecast for parts of J-K, Himachal

New Delhi, Dec 20 (PTI) As the year draws to a close, mercury hovered around its wintry lows and normal life was affected across northern states due to foggy conditions, with red alert warning issued in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday.

The national capital was in the grip of a cold wave, with the sun largely obscured by clouds and pollutants lingering in the atmosphere, leading to reduced visibility. At least 129 flights were cancelled at the Delhi airport on Saturday due to dense fog, according to an official.

The hilly state and UT of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir are set to witness a spell of wet weather, with predictions of rain and snow at several places, according to the weather departments.

A day ahead of the onset of the 'Chillai-Kalan' -- the 40-day harsh winter period in Kashmir -- the local meteorological department on Saturday forecast moderate to heavy snowfall in the higher reaches.

Chillai Kalan begins on December 21 every year and ends on January 31.

A spell of wet weather on December 20-21 in Kashmir is likely to coincide with the yearly phenomenon, while light to moderate precipitation may affect the plains, the weather office said.

Chances of snowfall are maximum and most frequent during this period, with temperatures dropping sharply across the valley.

The valley has not witnessed any major wet spell so far this winter. The dry weather has led to an increase in ailments such as cough and the common cold.

Officials further said the night temperature improved across the valley, with Pulwama emerging as the coldest place with a minimum of minus 3.2 degrees Celsius, according to the Met office.

Srinagar recorded a low of minus 0.4 degrees Celsius, about 2 degrees up from the previous night's minus 2.1 degrees Celsius, the officials said.

A thick layer of fog engulfed Srinagar and most other parts of the valley on Saturday morning, especially near the water bodies.

In south Kashmir, Pahalgam, one of the base camps for the Amarnath Yatra, recorded a low of minus 1 degree Celsius, while Kokernag and Qazigund recorded 0.8 and minus 1 degree Celsius, respectively.

The temperature in Kupwara in north Kashmir settled at minus 0.7 degrees Celsius, the weather department said.

In Gulmarg, the minimum temperature settled above the freezing point at 2 degrees Celsius, it said.

In Himachal Pradesh, the Local Met office issued a yellow warning for dense fog over and around parts of the reservoir area of the Bhakra dam in Bilaspur district and over parts of the Balh valley in Mandi district during early morning or in the morning and late night hours.

It also predicted light snow and rain at isolated places in high hills and a few places in middle hills on Sunday and pointed out that a fresh feeble western disturbance is likely to affect the western Himalayan Region from December 25.

The weather remained mainly dry over the day, and dense fog was observed in Bilaspur, while shallow fog was seen in Mandi.

There was no significant change in the minimum temperatures, and Kukumseri in the tribal Lahaul and Spiti district was coldest at night with a low of Minus 5.7 degrees followed by Tabo at minus 2.9 degrees Celsius.

The state received zero rainfall against the 20.5 mm of normal rainfall, a deficit of 100 per cent in all 12 districts of Himachal Pradesh in December so far. This, along with the gradual rise in mercury, has caused concern, especially among farmers and orchardists.

The national capital, meanwhile, battled worsening air quality amid a cold wave.

The maximum temperature plunged to 16.9 degrees Celsius, 5.3 notches below the normal, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

The forecast for the city has been attributed to unfavourable meteorological conditions, with wind speeds below 10 kilometres per hour, conditions that are not conducive to the dispersion of pollutants.

Several parts of the national capital were seen enveloped in dense smog and fog during the early morning hours, leading to poor visibility, a situation that had been forecast by the IMD a day earlier, with the city under the orange alert.

For Uttar Pradesh, the IMD issued a red alert for dense to very dense fog and cold day conditions across several parts, warning that the adverse weather is likely to persist over the next two days.

According to a press release issued by the Meteorological Centre, Lucknow, dense fog conditions were recorded across large parts of the state over the past 24 hours, with visibility dropping sharply in many districts.

Very dense fog, with visibility below 50 metres, was observed at Agra airport, Prayagraj, Kanpur (airport), Bareilly, Jhansi and several other locations.

The IMD said that cold day conditions were reported in many districts, particularly in western, central and eastern Uttar Pradesh, as cold northerly winds, surface inversion and the influence of an anti-cyclone continued to prevail over the region.

A western disturbance over north India and the weakening of the tropical westerly jet stream have also contributed to the prevailing weather pattern, it said.

The weather office warned that dense to very dense fog is likely to continue during late night and early morning hours in several districts till December 22, while cold day to severe cold day conditions may persist in isolated pockets till December 24.

According to the IMD criteria, for any place where the temperature plummets below 10 degrees Celsius, a 'cold day' is declared when the maximum temperature fluctuation remains 4.5 to 6.4 degrees Celsius below normal, while a 'severe cold day' is when the departure exceeds 6.5 degrees Celsius.

Districts including Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Bareilly, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Noida, Gorakhpur, Ayodhya, Sultanpur, Rae Bareli, Sitapur, Hardoi, Etawah, Mainpuri, Aligarh and Mathura are among those likely to be affected by dense fog and cold day conditions, the IMD said.

The weather office has advised people to take precautions, especially during early morning hours, and urged authorities to remain alert as low visibility could disrupt road, rail and air traffic.

The northern states of Punjab and Haryana are also reeling under intense cold as a thick blanket of fog envelops several areas in both states.

Faridkot in Punjab was the coldest place with a low of 4.9 degrees Celsius on Saturday, the weather office said.

According to the local meteorological department, Amritsar recorded a low of 9.9 degrees Celsius, five degrees above normal.

Ludhiana and Patiala recorded their minimum temperatures of 9.6 and 9.2 degrees Celsius, up to three notches above normal.

Pathankot logged 9 degrees Celsius while Bathinda saw a low of 5.4 degrees Celsius. Gurdaspur's minimum temperature was 7.5 degrees Celsius.

Chandigarh, the joint capital of the two states, recorded a minimum of 11.3 degrees Celsius, three degrees above normal.

In neighbouring Haryana, Jind recorded a low of 5.2 degrees Celsius.

The minimum temperature in Ambala was recorded at 11.6 degrees Celsius, four notches above normal, while Hisar registered a low of 6.2 degrees Celsius, one notch below normal.

Cold conditions persisted similarly in Rajasthan, where temperatures plummeted in several parts of the state, the meteorological department said.

Fatehpur in Sikar district recorded the lowest temperature at 5.4 degrees Celsius, followed closely by Sikar at 5.8 degrees on Friday night, the weather office said.

In the capital city, Jaipur, the mercury settled at 10.8 degrees Celsius, while Dabok and Ajmer both recorded 10.5 degrees, they said.

Alwar recorded 6 degrees Celsius, Karauli 6.2 degrees, and Dausa recorded a minimum of 6.4 degrees, they said.

The weather conditions will remain unchanged during the next 24 hours, they said.

The IMD on Saturday issued an orange alert (be prepared) for very dense fog likely in parts of Jharkhand over the next two days, and a yellow alert (be updated) for the next three days.

The districts for which the orange alert has been issued include Garhwa, Palamu, Latehar, Chatra, Hazaribagh, Koderma, Giridih, Ramgarh, and Bokaro. Early-morning visibility is expected to drop significantly in these districts to less than 50 metres. Very dense fog is likely in these districts until December 22, the IMD bulletin said. The yellow alert has been issued until December 23. A total of 13 districts are likely to be affected on December 21, 10 districts on December 22, and 8 districts on December 23.

The districts likely to be affected on Sunday include: Gumla, Lohardaga, Ranchi, Khunti, Ramgarh, Bokaro, Dhanbad, Jamtara, Deoghar, Dumka, Godda, Pakur, and Sahibganj. Morning visibility is expected to drop in these districts to between 50 and 200 metres, it said.

"Light south-easterly to easterly winds are prevailing in the lower tropospheric levels over Jharkhand. Dense fog is likely to prevail in most parts of the northern and some central districts. This situation will continue until December 23," Abhishek Anand, Deputy Director of the Ranchi Meteorological Centre, said.

"No significant change in the minimum temperature is likely in the next five days," he added. He also advised caution during early morning travel due to low visibility.

In the 24 hours till 8:30 am on Saturday, Ranchi recorded the state’s lowest temperature at 6.4 degrees Celsius, followed by Lohardaga (7.7 degrees) and Latehar (8.7 degrees), the IMD said. Meanwhile, dry weather is likely to prevail across West Bengal, with no major change in minimum temperatures during the next five days, the IMD said on Saturday.

A gradual fall in minimum temperatures by two degrees Celsius is expected in the subsequent two days, it said in a bulletin.

Shallow fog is likely to occur at one or two places over all districts of West Bengal on Sunday, the IMD said.

The hill town of Darjeeling recorded a minimum temperature of 5.8 degrees Celsius, while Kalimpong notched 11 degrees Celsius on Saturday morning, it said.

Alipurduar in north Bengal recorded the lowest minimum temperature in the state's plains at 10 degrees Celsius, followed by Purulia at 11 degrees Celsius.

State capital Kolkata recorded a minimum temperature of 16.2 degrees Celsius. PTI TEAM ARB ARB ARB