Weather News: Cold winds will affect the people of Delhi, Meteorological Department has issued an alert

IMD Weather News: Cold wave continued in parts of north and west India on Sunday, with mercury dropping by several degrees Celsius in Delhi, Punjab and Rajasthan. 

There was some respite from the intense cold as minimum temperatures rose in higher reaches of Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. The weather department has forecast cold wave in parts of Kashmir over the next three days, so the relief will be short-lived.

Delhi's minimum temperature settled at 4.9 degrees Celsius, 3.1 degrees below normal, but there was no cold wave, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported. The maximum temperature in the capital on Sunday was 23.2 degrees Celsius, 0.2 degrees below normal, the IMD reported.

The weather department has predicted moderate fog in Delhi on Monday. The temperature is expected to be five degrees Celsius and 23 degrees Celsius respectively. It said cold wave continued in Punjab and Haryana, and Faridkot recorded the lowest temperature of one degree Celsius.

The night was also cold in Punjab's Gurdaspur and Bathinda. Gurdaspur had the lowest temperature of 2 degrees Celsius, while Bathinda had a low of 4.6 degrees Celsius. Pathankot had the lowest temperature of 3.5 degrees Celsius, while Amritsar had 3.9 degrees Celsius, the weather department said.

It said Ludhiana had the lowest temperature of 6.8 degrees Celsius, while Patiala had 3.8 degrees Celsius. Narnaul had the lowest temperature of three degrees Celsius, while Hisar, Haryana, had 1.7 degrees Celsius, the weather department said.

Gurugram had the lowest temperature of 5.6 degrees Celsius, but severe cold continued in Bhiwani as well.

Rohtak had the lowest temperature of 5.2 degrees Celsius, while Ambala had 5.7 degrees Celsius, the weather department said. Chandigarh, the capital of Haryana and Punjab, had the lowest temperature of 4.8 degrees Celsius. 

Cold wave persisted in the lower hills of Himachal Pradesh, but temperatures rose by three to five degrees in higher altitudes. Tabo was the coldest place in the state at minus 10.6 degrees Celsius at night. Shimla recorded a temperature of 12.2 degrees Celsius, 6.5 degrees above normal.

Kufri had the lowest temperature of 9.8 degrees Celsius, while Narkanda had the lowest temperature of 6.4 degrees Celsius. Una had the lowest temperature of 0.2 degrees Celsius, while Sunder Nagar had the lowest temperature of 0.6 degrees Celsius.

The local weather office has issued a "yellow" alert for cold wave in the lower hills and plains till next Thursday. They have predicted dry weather in the state for the next seven days.

The weather office said cold wave conditions will continue in Una, Hamirpur, Bilaspur and Kangra districts. There was no significant change in maximum temperature in Himachal Pradesh. The hottest place throughout the day was Solan at 24.7 degrees Celsius. Shimla recorded a temperature of 19 degrees Celsius, five degrees above normal.

The Meteorological Department said that there has been some relief from the cold wave in Kashmir due to increase in minimum temperature. But it is below the freezing point.

The summer capital Srinagar recorded a low of minus 3.4 degrees Celsius tonight (up from 4.6 degrees Celsius last night).

Gulmarg, a popular destination for skiing, had the lowest of 3.8 degrees Celsius (a rise of nearly four degrees).

Last night, the minimum temperature in Pahalgam, the base camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra, was minus 4.8 degrees Celsius, three degrees up from the previous night, the Weather Department said.

Outside Pampore town, the mercury in Konibal Valley was minus 5.2 degrees Celsius.

It was 2.8 degrees Celsius in Kokernag in south Kashmir, 3.7 degrees Celsius in north Kashmir and minus 4.0 degrees Celsius in Qazigund. 

The weather is likely to remain mainly dry till December 21, the weather department said. But the minimum temperature is forecast to fall further in the Valley over the next three days, and cold wave conditions will prevail in many places.