Chandigarh, December 18
The dense fog which engulfed most parts of Punjab and Haryana claimed four lives and disrupted rail and air traffic in North India, even as people got little respite from the intense chilly weather which has gripped the region for the past week.Four persons, including an NRI woman were killed when a jeep fell into a canal while crossing a narrow bridge near Kurukshetra in Haryana, apparently due to poor visibility. Tilak Raj, a resident of Kinar sector in Chamba district, died of cold yesterday.
Amritsar at 5°C recorded the lowest temperature in the northern plains, a Met office spokesman said here.
Foggy conditions coupled with cloudy weather resulted in a drop
in temperature by a few degrees in most parts of the region, the spokesman said.
Several north-bound trains, including the Delhi-Chandigarh Shatabdi Express, Himalayan Queen and Bhivani-Kalka Ekta Express ran behind schedule due to poor visibility following dense fog, railway sources said.
Air authorities said several flights, including the Mumbai-Delhi-Chandigarh flight of Indian Airlines and Jet Airways’ Delhi-Chandigarh flight arrived behind schedule at the local airport.
The Met office said Chandigarh, Adampur, Sirsa, Bathinda, Karnal and Kurukshetra remained engulfed by fog, resulting in poor visibility till noon.
In Haryana, Hisar recorded 10.3°C followed by 11.2°C at Ambala and 11.9°C at Karnal, while Ludhiana had a low of 11.2°C followed by 12.1°C at Patiala in Punjab.
While Jammu recorded a low of 9.2°C, the temperature was 4°C in Shimla.
The Met office has predicted light to moderate rain at isolated places in the region while rain and snow is expected at a few places in Himachal Pradesh in the next 24 hours. — PTI, OC
