Winter onslaught affects daily life

At least 50 trains were running behind schedule in Delhi and 19 were rescheduled as visibility fell to 400 metres in the morning. The minimum temperature settled at six degrees Celsius, two notches below average. The authorities have cancelled more than 25 trains from Delhi till January 31.

In Rajasthan as well, a few trains coming to Jaipur were delayed by two-ten hours due to fog. In Haryana, power supply in some parts was affected after transmission lines tripped due to dense fog.  “Power supply was affected in Sirsa, Fatehabad, Bhiwani and Hisar districts,” an official said.

Most parts of Punjab and Chandigarh experienced bright and sunny weather. The minimum temperature in Chandigarh was six degrees while Hisar and Rohtak in Haryana recorded four degrees low. In Punjab, Amritsar and Ludhiana recorded four and five degrees, respectively.

In Bihar, the biting cold weather continued. At least 22 people have died in the cold wave in the last five days. The minimum temperature in Patna was recorded at 6.5 degrees while it was 4.4 degrees in Gaya.

Up north, both Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh witnessed cold and dry weather conditions. The minimum temperature was minus 1.2 degrees in Srinagar. In Shimla, the minimum temperature was 1.2 degrees. Dharamsala recorded a low of 4.1 while Keylong was the coldest in the state at minus 7.1 degrees. On the other hand, Rajasthan witnessed a moderate rise in temperature as capital Jaipur recorded 11 degrees, two notches above average. Mount Abu, the only hill station in the desert state, was the coldest at one degree.

Power supply disrupted

Power transmission in certain parts of Haryana was affected on Thursday morning after transmission lines tripped due to dense fog, an official said in Chandigarh.

“Some transmission lines of 220 KV and 132 KV level of the Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam tripped and broke down due to dense fog, affecting power supply in Sirsa, Fatehabad, Bhiwani and Hisar districts,” a spokesman of the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN) said.

He said power supply to Sirsa district, a major part of Fatehabad and three-fourth of Bhiwani, was affected due to the breakdown.