Cold wave conditions prevail in North and Northwest India on Friday; Rajasthan’s Bikaner hits zero

Parts of North and Northwest India are in a grip of cold wave conditions with the Indian Meteorological Department predicting the chilly weather to persist for the next 24 hours in regions including Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Chandigarh, Jammu, Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. On 5 January, Delhiites experienced the coldest day in two years as the mercury bar hit its lowest at 2.8 degrees Celsius. Ayanagar recorded a minimum temperature of 1.8 degrees Celsius with the entire NCR region coming under the cover of dense fog. The minimum temperature also fell critically low in a few locations in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. These areas beat most of the hill stations in terms of the lowest temperature.The icy weather continued on Friday across Delhi. These cold wave conditions are predicted to persist for the next 24 hours. An orange alert was issued by the IMD for Delhi and other NCR regions. A minimum temperature of 4 degrees Celsius was recorded at the city's main weather station, Safdarjung, while a maximum temperature of roughly 17 degrees Celsius is predicted.The next 24 hours are also expected to witness "ground frosting conditions" in numerous locations throughout Rajasthan, according to the weather department. In various districts, including Alwar, Bharatpur, Dholpur, Jhunjhunu, and Karauli, an orange alert was declared. Bikaner touched a minimum temperature of 0.0 degree Celsius, while Charu recorded 1 degree Celsius . The administration has decided to close schools in many districts until 15 January owing to the bitter cold.In Punjab and Haryana, cold wave conditions will prevail in many areas during the next 24 hours. Cold to extremely cold daytime temperatures are predicted over the next two days in other areas. On Friday, Hisar had the lowest temperature of 4 degrees Celsius .The Jammu division would continue to experience extreme cold wave conditions for the next 24 hours, as forecast by the meteorological office. On January 4, Srinagar experienced the second-lowest minimum temperature for the month of January in the past five years. The city's temperature was minus 6.4 degrees Celsius. Apart from Srinagar, the coldest night of the season was also felt in Qazigund and Kupwara. Pahalgam, in the Anantnag district, registered minus 9.2 degrees Celsius that day, making it the union territory's coldest place so far.Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.