Breeze, drizzle make mercury dip, give taste of things to come
PRAYAGRAJ: An overcast sky and rain raised the chill factor in Prayagraj, on Wednesday. The bright and sunny sky of Tuesday was replaced by a thick cloud cover by early and cool breeze on Wednesday. By around 10am, several localities of the city witnessed sporadic rains, bringing the mercury down further.
Because of the overcast conditions and rain, the mercury recorded a decrease of around 5 degrees Celsius as compared to Tuesday. The maximum temperature on Wednesday dipped to 23.6 degrees Celsius from a maximum of 28 degrees Celsius recorded on Tuesday.
However, the minimum temperature increased by over 1 degree Celsius. The minimum temperature on Wednesday was recorded at 16.9 degrees Celsius whereas on Tuesday it was 15.6 degrees Celsius. Likewise, the city recorded rainfall of 1.6millimeter, the weatherman said.
As the sun failed to come out for the entire day, cold winds forced citizens to stay indoors and come out only after donning winter wear. The rain made commuters suffer in some localities, as mud from the laying of the pipeline in different parts, turned into slush. Allahabad University geography department head AR Siddiqui said, “Although the clouds and rain were because of ‘western disturbances’ but citizens should be prepared for a chilly winter this year, as the moisture content in the atmosphere is on the higher side.”
As the Himalayan region too has received snowfall a few days back, the cool winds have descended on the plains, bringing down mercury, which would continue to fall in the coming days, he added. On the higher minimum temperature, the weather expert explained that because of the cloud cover, one must be feeling a bit warm because of inverse isolations not working and the heat remaining in the lower layer. Once the sky clears, although the maximum temperature may increase but the minimum temperature would come down further, he warned.
“The rain was more than welcome by the farming community as this would add to the moisture in the soil, which would help prepare the fields for the Rabi crop (wheat, mustered, gram etc)”, said district forest officer YP Shukla.