Dense fog over many parts of NW India, cold wave continues
NEW DELHI: Dense to very dense fog was reported in pockets of Punjab, Haryana, northwest Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Moderate fog was observed at isolated pockets over Chandigarh, Delhi, Sub-himalayan West Bengal, Sikkim and Tripura.
Patiala, Ambala, Gwalior, Bareilly, Sultanpur and Bhagalpur recorded visibility of less than 25 m each at 5.30 am this morning. Jhansi, Baharaich, Varanasi, Patna, Purnea and Gaya recorded visibility of less than 50 m each while the fog was a less dense in Chandigarh, Delhi (Safdarjung), Gorakhpur, Agartala and Kailasaher which recorded visibility of less than 200 m.
Visibility had started reducing since Thursday. At 11.30 pm on Thursday, Gwalior recorded visibility of less than 25 m; Patiala, Lucknow, Gorakhpur and Patna less than 200 m each. Ambala, Delhi, Bareilly, Baharich, Sultanpur, Varanaai, Gaya and Bhagalpur had recorded visibility of less than 500 m each.
Most towns and cities in NCR recorded severe air quality, including Delhi, Faridabad,
Ghaziabad and Greater Noida on Friday morning. Severe air with air quality index of over 400 can affect healthy persons and seriously impact those with existing health conditions, according to Central Pollution Control Board.
Many parts of northwest India are recording cold day and cold wave conditions, according to India Meteorological Department.
Cold day to severe cold day conditions occurred at few places over east Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, west Uttar Pradesh and east Rajasthan. Cold wave to severe cold wave conditions occurred at many places over Punjab, Haryana, at a few places over east Rajasthan, east Uttar Pradesh and at some places over Delhi, west Uttar Pradesh and west Rajasthan.
The lowest minimum temperature over plains of northwest India was 1.1 degree C (°C) recorded at Adampur in Punjab on Thursday.
Cold, dry northwesterly winds are blowing over the northern plains and adjoining parts of central India. Under its influence, cold day to severe cold day conditions are likely in some pockets over Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar during next the 2-3 days. Cold wave to severe cold wave conditions are likely in many pockets over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and East Rajasthan during the next 2 days and decrease in spatial distribution and intensity thereafter. Ground frost conditions are also likely over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Uttar Pradesh and north Rajasthan during the next two days.
Dense to very dense fog is likely over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, sub-himalayan West Bengal, Sikkim and Bihar during the next two days and decrease in spatial distribution and intensity thereafter. Dense fog in isolated pockets is also very likely over Uttarakhand, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura during the next two to three days.