NEW DELHI: Northern states reeled under a piercing cold wave today with the national capital and a few places in Jammu and Kashmir recording the lowest temperature for January in three years and mercury dipping below the freezing point at many areas in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan.
Rail services were hit by poor visibility in the morning. Twenty-six trains were delayed, eight rescheduled and seven cancelled due to foggy weather. Air traffic, however, continued uninterrupted.
Icy winds swept the national capital that recorded a low of 3.4 degrees Celsius.
“Today’s minimum of 3.4 degrees is the lowest for January in the last three years and it is also the season’s lowest,” Ravinder Bhishen, Director of the Regional Weather Forecasting Centre, told reporters.
Authorities in Gautam Budh Nagar ordered closure of all schools affiliated to CBSE, ICSC or UP Board from nursery to Class XII till January 15 due to the intense cold.
Tribal areas and upper hills in Himachal Pradesh quivered under biting conditions. Strong icy winds swept Shimla, where several places remained without power for the seventh day. However, water supply was partially restored.
Many places in Jammu and Kashmir gauged the season’s lowest night temperature. The hill resort of Pahalgam recorded the lowest temperature in three years in January at minus 13.0 degrees Celsius. (AGENCIES)
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