The mercury in Delhi dropped to the lowest in six years and temperatures remained below freezing point in Kashmir valley in the absence of snow-rain as the nationwide toll in the cold wave reached 90 with seven more deaths.

One person was found dead in Banskantha district in Gujarat and the total reached 71 in Uttar Pradesh following six overnight deaths.

The fresh casualties in Uttar Pradesh comprised three in Agra, two in Mainpuri and one in Kaushambi.
While the Lucknowites were greeted by a bright and sunny morning on Thursday, Taj City was coldest with the minimum temperature of 3 degrees Celsius, four degrees below normal.

The district administration had ordered the closure of schools till January 5.

Besides, bonfire arrangements had been made at various places for the destitute. Meanwhile, rail, road and air traffic continued to be affected due to dense fog envelope during early and late hours in Agra.

Intense cold-wave
The Kashmir valley continued to reel under intense cold-wave condition in the absence of snow-rain owing to low western disturbances. Jammu recorded the minimum at 4.4 degrees and in Udhampur it dipped to minus 1.5 degrees.

After the coldest night on Wednesday at minus 7.4 degrees , a temperature of minus 7 degrees was recorded this morning, which was five degree below normal. Water in the Dal Lake remained frozen and children were seen throwing stones and walking on its surface.

People in Kargil, Leh and Drass, the second coldest place in the world, too, are reeling under severe cold. Icy cold winds lashed the capital town of Shimla recording a minimum of 1.8 degrees.

Rain or snow are likely to occur at isolated places in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.

Likewise, severe cold wave swept Punjab with Adampur being the coldest at -2.2 degrees in Punjab. The holy city of Amritsar shivered at 1.0 degree whereas the minimum plunged to minus 0.8 degree at Halwara airbase, near Ludhiana.