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This story is from January 12, 2017

7 die in Shimla as much of north India sees season’s lowest temperature

With fresh spells of snow and rain in hill states, the cold wave over north India intensified on Wednesday, pushing the minimum temperature several degrees below the normal. Seven people died in Shimla, two of them of hypothermia. Shimla recorded a minimum temp of minus 3.2°C, 6 degrees below normal
7 die in Shimla as much of north India sees season’s lowest temperature
With fresh spells of snow and rain in hill states, the cold wave over north India intensified on Wednesday, pushing the minimum temperature several degrees below the normal. Seven people died in Shimla, two of them of hypothermia. Shimla recorded a minimum temp of minus 3.2°C, 6 degrees below normal
Key Highlights
  • Shimla recorded a minimum temperature of minus 3.2°C - coldest in six years
  • Srinagar recorded a minimum temperature of minus 4.1°C and maximum 6.2°C
  • Chandigarh too experienced a cold with the minimum temperature falling to 2.4°C
  • In New Delhi, Wed saw the minimum temperature drop to 4°C
With fresh spells of snow and rain in hill states, the cold wave over north India intensified on Wednesday, pushing the minimum temperature several degrees below the normal. Seven people died in Shimla, two of them of hypothermia.
The five others, all carpenters from Bihar and West Bengal, are said to have died of asphyxiation while sleeping in a room heated with a coal brazier in Chail area.
“They apparently died in sleep due to the carbon monoxide,” a senior police officer said. The bodies were found in the morning by their employer. People continued to battle biting cold in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
Shimla recorded a minimum temperature of minus 3.2°C, 6 degrees below normal and the Himachal capital’s coldest in six years. The weatherman said the cold conditions were set to intensify further in hill states, with a fresh spell of snow from January 14 onwards. “A fresh western disturbance is likely to affect the western Himalayan region from January 14 and adjoining plains from January 15 onwards,” said Manmohan Singh, director, Shimla Meteorological Centre.
In Uttarakhand, the snow brought a wave of tourists, including Bharat Ratna cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, to Mussoorie. Tendulkar, a frequent visitor to Mussoorie for several years now, headed straight to friend Sanjay Narang’s home at Dahlia Bank. Doon residents woke up to a temperature of 2.9°C, the season’s lowest minimum for the Uttarakhand capital so far. Met officials said no immediate relief was expected, and temperatures would continue to remain low in the hills and plains of Uttarakhand for the next few days. Ground frost is likely to occur at a few places on Thursday and Friday, a Met official said.
In Jammu & Kashmir, summer capital Srinagar recorded a minimum temperature of minus 4.1°C and maximum temperature of 6.2°C. The Met office predicted that the city’s dry weather was likely to continue for the next 48 hours (from Wednesday), causing a further drop in the night temperature. Tourist favourites Gulmarg and Pahalgam recorded minimum temperatures of minus 13°C and minus 12.4°C, respectively. In the national capital, Wednesday saw the minimum temperature drop to 4°C, three notches below the season’s average and the lowest this season.

Met officials forecast no rain, and said the cold wave could mellow from Friday. Fog engulfed several parts of Delhi, NCR and western Uttar Pradesh resulting in delay and cancellation of several trains. Chandigarh residents too experienced a cold Tuesday night with the minimum temperature falling to 2.4°C, two degrees below normal.
Cold wave conditions intensified in Rajasthan, with most places recording their lowest temperatures for the season. Fatehpur (Churu) and Mount Abu were the state’s coldest. corded a minimum temperature of minus 4.1°C and maximum temperature of 6.2°C.
The Met office predicted that the city’s dry weather was likely to continue for the next 48 hours (from Wednesday), causing a further drop in the night temperature. Tourist favourites Gulmarg and Pahalgam recorded minimum temperatures of minus 13°C and minus 12.4°C, respectively.
In the national capital, Wednesday saw the minimum temperature drop to 4°C, three notches below the season’s average and the lowest this season.
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