NEW DELHI: It was a frigid Friday in the northern plains of the country when mercury dropped below zero in as many as three cities, with Hisar in Haryana registering -1.2 degrees Celsius and Churu (Rajasthan) and Bathinda (Punjab). 0.2 degrees Celsius each.
While it is rare for so many places on the plains to record temperatures below freezing in a single day, two other cities recorded temperatures near freezing. These were Faridkot in Punjab and Narnaul in Haryana, both registering a low of 0.2 degrees C. Further east, Lucknow airport recorded 0.5 degrees C while Delhi reported its lowest January temperature of 1.1 degrees. C in Safdarjung.
This winter, which has been one of the harshest so far in recent years, has seen as many as five cities in the plains reach freezing, the other two cities are Sikar in Rajasthan and Narnaul, both recording a low of -0 , 5 degrees C In recent days.
That’s not all, two more cities were on the verge of freezing in the last week of December. Pilani in Rajasthan recorded a low of 0.2 degrees C and Amritsar in Punjab 0.4 degrees C.
“This winter lower than normal minimum temperatures were expected in the northern plains. The Indian Meteorological Department had said the same thing in its seasonal forecast in early December. On a global scale, this is a La Niña year, when the temperatures in the Pacific are unusual Those years normally lead to harsh winters in northern India, “said Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, director of IMD.
The latest period of severe cold was caused by icy north / northwest winds whipping the region amid clear skies, conditions leading to extremely cold nights as the sun’s heat dissipates rapidly at night in the absence of a blanket. clouds, IMD officials said. .
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