Much of North India continues to reel under extreme cold with the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issuing cold wave warning in isolated pockets of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and J&K over the coming days.
The cold wave conditions will grip parts of Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh too till the end of the week.
As for Delhi, the state recorded a maximum temperature of 22.4 degrees Celsius on Wednesday which was two notches above the season's average. On Thursday morning, a thick layer of fog enveloped parts of Delhi as the minimum temperature dropped to 7°C. The IMD has forecast a dense fog in the city.
#WATCH | A layer of fog covered parts of Delhi this morning as the minimum temperature dropped to 8°C, as per IMD.
— ANI (@ANI) December 26, 2024
Drone visuals from the Akshardham area shot around 7.35 am. pic.twitter.com/bHxinAE5Uc
An advisory from the Delhi Airport said low visibility procedures are in progress at Delhi Airport. "All flight operations are presently normal," the advisory read.
Parts of Uttar Pradesh and Jaipur too saw fog cover the city.
#WATCH | Jaipur, Rajasthan: A thin layer of fog engulfs parts of Jaipur as cold wave grips the city. pic.twitter.com/DyXRLO3WMX
— ANI (@ANI) December 26, 2024
'Chillai-Kalan' in Kashmir
The temperature plunged as low as minus 7.3 degrees celsius with the onset of 'Chillai-Kalan', the harshest winter period of 40 days that started on December 21, in Kashmir Valley on Wednesday\.
The cold conditions in the valley caused several water bodies to freeze, affecting water supply lines in many areas. A thin layer of ice covered the surface of several water bodies, including the Dal Lake.
The IMD has predicted a dip of two to three degrees in the minimum temperatures in Kashmir over the next two days.
No White Christmas
Much to the disappointment of tourists, there was no 'White Christmas' in Kashmir this time. The summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir has had no snowfall so far this season. Tourists said it was colder this year but there has been no snowfall in Srinagar.
Some parts of Himachal received snowfall - Jot received 10 cm of snow on Wednesday - while Simla received none.
The snowfall also led to the closure of 226 roads, including three national highways. According to the state emergency operation centre, a maximum of 123 roads were closed in Shimla district, 36 in Lahaul and Spiti and 25 in Kullu. Additionally, 173 transformers were disrupted, affecting power supply across the state.
