New Delhi, Dec 26 (PTI) Several parts of north India continued to be in the grip of intense cold wave conditions on Thursday with minimum temperatures settling several degrees below the freezing point in some cities of Kashmir valley.
Weather was mostly dry across Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand during the last 24 hours.
Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan experienced severe cold wave conditions with mercury falling several notches below normal.
Officials said there is a possibility of light snowfall over the higher reaches of Kashmir on Friday and Saturday as a western disturbance is set to impact the region.
The night temperature dropped at most places in Kashmir as the valley continued to reel under freezing conditions. The fall in the mercury led to the freezing of water supply lines as a thin layer of ice covered the surface of several water bodies including the Dal Lake.
Srinagar recorded a low of minus 7 degrees Celsius (C) on Wednesday night, slightly up from the previous night’s minus 7.3 degrees C, the meteorological department said.
Gulmarg, a tourist resort town known for skiing activities in north Kashmir, recorded a minimum temperature of minus 6 degrees C, up from minus 6.6 degrees C the previous night.
Pahalgam, the base camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra in south Kashmir, registered a minimum temperature of minus 8.6 degrees C, slightly down from the previous night’s minus 8.4 degrees C, it said.
Qazigund, the gateway town to Kashmir, logged a minimum temperature of minus 7 degrees C, while Konibal, a hamlet in the Pampore area, was the coldest recorded place in the valley at minus 9 degrees C, it said.
The meteorological department has said an active western disturbance is set to impact Jammu and Kashmir from Friday afternoon to Saturday afternoon.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said people in the valley were facing difficulties due to intense cold conditions but the government would be able to provide uninterrupted electricity only after 100 per cent metering is achieved.
“As far as winter preparedness is concerned, there is an intense cold and there has been a dry spell. I pray to God for snowfall so that this dry spell ends.
“Our endeavour is to minimise the power cuts and ensure water supply even as pipes freeze due to the low temperature. Despite difficulties, our endeavour is that the government functions smoothly,” Abdullah told reporters in Srinagar.
The chief minister said the complaints of unscheduled power cuts would continue “because there is pressure on the system”.
“The problem is that some people have a (load) agreement of four bulbs, but they use four heaters instead… Meter is the best way to address this, the more metering we have, the less power cuts there will be.
“I hope we take J&K to 100 per cent metering so that we supply 24 hours electricity. God willing, we will achieve that very soon,” he added.
In Himachal Pradesh, the higher and middle hills will be receiving fresh snowfall from December 27 onwards, officials said.
According to the state’s Meteorological Department, light to moderate snowfall in mid and high hills of the state are very likely to occur on December 27, 28 and 29.
Maximum temperatures are also likely to fall by 6 degrees C to minus 8 degrees C over many parts of the state on December 27 and 28 and will rise by 4 degrees C to 6 degrees C on December 29 and 30. Similarly, minimum temperatures are very likely to rise by 3 degrees C to minus 4 degrees C over many parts of the state during next three days and fall by 2 degrees C to 3 degrees C thereafter.
Shimla, the state’s capital, recorded 14.8 degrees C maximum temperature while Kufri, a popular excursion point near Shimla recorded 9.8 degrees C maximum temperature. Prominent tourists destinations Dharamshala and Manali recorded 21.4 degrees C and 12.7 degrees C respectively.
Uttarakhand capital Dehradun recorded a maximum temperature of 24.6 degree C, which is around 4 degrees more than the normal for this time of the year, the MeT office here said.
Nainital recorded a maximum temperature of 14.3 degrees C and Mussoorie 15.6 degrees C, it said.
Punjab and Haryana continue to be in the grip of severe cold conditions. Several places in the two states reeled under severe cold conditions on Thursday, with the common capital of the two states, Chandigarh, recording a low of 7.3 degrees Celsius, MeT officials said.
Amritsar experienced a cold night at 5.7 degrees C while Gurdaspur recorded a low of 6 degrees C.
In Haryana, Narnaul shivered at a minimum temperature of 4.5 degrees C while Sirsa recorded a low of 5 degrees C. Gurugram’s minimum settled at 8.8 degrees C.
After a day of dense fog in many parts, Rajasthan could see some rain and hailstorms from Thursday onwards as the state continues to reel under severe cold.
Due to a new western disturbance from Thursday, light to moderate rain is likely to occur in some parts of Udaipur, Ajmer, Kota, Jaipur, Bharatpur and Bikaner divisions, according to the Meteorological Centre in Jaipur.
The lowest minimum in Rajasthan was recorded at 3.8 degrees C in Fatehpur (Sikar), 5 degrees C in Churu and 5.7 degrees C in Pilani. PTI COR SAN SDA SUN ALM SSB KSS KSS
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