Gurugram in Haryana and Bathinda in Punjab endured the season’s chilliest night as temperatures fell to 0.6 degrees Celsius, marking the lowest reading so far this winter, according to the meteorological department on Monday.
The sharp drop, recorded on Sunday night, left residents in these cities grappling with intense freezing conditions. In Gurugram, historical data shows a low of 0 degrees Celsius on January 11, 1971, though it remains unclear whether the recent figure represents an all-time record due to incomplete records from every year. For Bathinda, the meteorological department noted a previous low of minus 1 degree Celsius on January 17, 2023.
On Monday, the average minimum temperature hovered at 6.8 degrees Celsius in Gurugram and 5 degrees Celsius in Bathinda, per official figures.
Locals in Gurugram described the cold as unusually severe. One resident, Vinod Kumar, remarked that while sharp dips occur during harsh winters, he could not recall the mercury approaching sub-zero levels in recent years.
The biting chill extended across Punjab, Haryana, and their shared capital, Chandigarh, with dense fog reducing visibility in numerous areas over the past few days.
Chandigarh Meteorological Department director Surender Paul indicated that intense cold is expected to persist in Punjab and Haryana for the next three days. Thereafter, cold conditions will continue, but the severe phase is likely to ease.
The weather office forecast cold wave to severe cold wave conditions, along with ground frost at isolated spots on Tuesday across Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh. Dense to very dense fog is anticipated at select locations in these regions on Tuesday, with improvement expected afterward.
In Punjab, minimum temperatures included 1.1 degrees Celsius in Amritsar, 1.8 in Faridkot, 2 in Gurdaspur, 4.2 in Ludhiana, 4.3 in Patiala, and 4.4 in Mansa.
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Chandigarh logged a low of 3.3 degrees Celsius.
Across Haryana, several districts saw readings below 5 degrees Celsius, with Gurugram at the bottom (0.6°C), followed by Narnaul (1.2°C), Bhiwani (1.5°C), Sonipat (1.6°C), Sirsa (1.7°C), Hisar (2.6°C), Rohtak (3.2°C), and Karnal/Jind (3.5°C).
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for cold wave conditions in Bhiwani, Charkhi Dadri, Jhajjar, Rewari, and Mahendergarh districts on Tuesday. An orange alert applied to the remaining parts of Haryana, except Panchkula, Yamunanagar, Ambala, Kurukshetra, and Kaithal, which remained under a yellow alert.
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