New Delhi: As strong cold spells hit northern India, the mercury dropped to near freezing temperature in Churu, Rajasthan on Saturday.
The lowest temperature in Churu, located in the desert area of Rajasthan, was recorded at -1.1 ° C, followed by Amritsar at 0.7 ° C and Ganganagar at 1.1 ° C.
According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), severe cold spells have prevailed in parts of northern Rajasthan and Punjab, while cold spells prevail in isolated pockets in Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Gilgit, Baltistan and Muzaffarabad, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, and northern Madhya Pradesh.
IMD predicted on Saturday that the cold snap is expected to continue in parts of Punjab, Haryana, northern Rajasthan, northern Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh until December 21.
Early this morning, the minimum temperature was recorded at 4.6 ° C in the region of Safdarjung, the national capital.
Visibility also remained low this morning in Delhi, creating difficult driving conditions with slower journey times.
Delhi’s air quality, according to the Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research System (SAFAR) -India, remained in the category of ‘poor’ and the air quality index ( AQI) stood at 290 on Sunday.
In addition, dry northwesterly winds of around 10 to 15 km / h and significantly lower than normal maximum temperatures have prevailed over Punjab, Haryana and northern Rajasthan for three days, reinforcing the impact of negative cold snaps which are expected to prevail over the next three days and improve thereafter, ”IMD said, ANI reported.
IMD further said dense fog prevailed in isolated pockets over Haryana, Uttarakhand, and Bihar, with shallow to moderate fog in parts of Punjab and isolated pockets over Delhi, northern Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh.
The IMD had previously issued a yellow alert in Uttarakhand from December 18 to 21 and an orange alert in the event of severe cold in Rajasthan.
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