This Article is From Feb 18, 2013

Winter chill in north India; fog affects 30 flights in Delhi

New Delhi: The whole of north India is freezing as temperatures dipped following widespread rain and a fresh bout of snowfall in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

Higher reaches of the Kashmir Valley reeled under severe cold conditions, with the weather office sounding an avalanche warning in snow-bound areas of north Kashmir.

The weather is also feeling the chill. The national capital witnessed a spell of rain over the weekend, and experienced cloudy weather. This morning, the city woke up to a thick blanket of fog with the general visibility dropping to below 50 metres.

Thirty flights were delayed in Delhi today morning because of low visibility. Nippy winds continued in the capital on Sunday morning as the minimum temperature settled a notch above average at 12 degrees Celsius.

According to the Met Department, chill and cloudy weather will persist in Delhi but no rain is predicted for the next three days,

"The next three days will be clear. Another western disturbance Feb 21 will bring back light rain and thunderstorms for two or three days," L.S. Rathore, director general, India Meteorological Department (IMD), told IANS.

Delhi received 2.1 mm of rainfall Sunday 5:30 p.m. to 8.30 a.m. Monday.

Humidity at 8:30 a.m. was 94 percent; in the morning visibility was reduced to 100 metres.

Sunday's maximum temperature fell five notches below average to 19.5 degrees Celsius, while minimum temperature was 12 degrees, a notch above average.

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