For some parts of Jharkhand, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Saturday issued an 'orange alert' (be prepared) for very dense fog likely over the next two days, and a 'yellow alert' (be updated) for the next three days.
The districts for which the 'orange alert' has been issued include Garhwa, Palamu, Latehar, Chatra, Hazaribagh, Koderma, Giridih, Ramgarh, and Bokaro. Early morning visibility is expected to drop significantly in these districts to less than 50 metres. Very dense fog is likely in these districts until December 22, the IMD then warned. Meanwhile, the yellow alert has been issued until December 23. A total of 13 districts are likely to be affected on December 21, 10 districts on December 22, and 8 districts on December 23.
The districts likely to be affected on Sunday are — Gumla, Lohardaga, Ranchi, Khunti, Ramgarh, Bokaro, Dhanbad, Jamtara, Deoghar, Dumka, Godda, Pakur, and Sahibganj. Morning visibility is expected to drop in these districts to between 50 and 200 metres, it said.
"Light south-easterly to easterly winds are prevailing in the lower tropospheric levels over Jharkhand. Dense fog is likely to prevail in most parts of the northern and some central districts. This situation will continue until December 23," said Abhishek Anand, Deputy Director of the Ranchi Meteorological Centre, while advising the general public to avoid travelling during the early hours of the day.
"No significant change in the minimum temperature is likely in the next five days," he added.
In the 24 hours till 8:30 am on Saturday, Ranchi recorded the state’s lowest temperature at 6.4 degrees Celsius, followed by Lohardaga (7.7 degrees) and Latehar (8.7 degrees), the IMD said. The minimum temperature in Daltonganj was 10.7 degrees Celsius, while Chaibasa recorded 11 degrees Celsius and Jamshedpur recorded 13.4 degrees Celsius.
On the other hand, a red alert has been issued for dense to very dense fog and cold day conditions across several parts of Uttar Pradesh. As per the warning, the adverse weather is likely to persist over the next two days.
According to a press release issued by the Meteorological Centre, Lucknow, dense fog conditions were recorded across large parts of the state over the past 24 hours, with visibility dropping sharply in many districts. Very dense fog, with visibility below 50 metres, was observed at Agra airport, Prayagraj, Kanpur (airport), Bareilly, Jhansi, and several other locations.
The IMD said that cold day conditions were reported in many districts, particularly in western, central, and eastern Uttar Pradesh, as cold northerly winds, surface inversion, and the influence of an anti-cyclone continued to prevail over the region. A western disturbance over north India and the weakening of the tropical westerly jet stream have also contributed to the prevailing weather pattern, it said.
The weather office warned that dense to very dense fog is likely to continue during late night and early morning hours in several districts till December 22, while cold day to severe cold day conditions may persist in isolated pockets till December 24.
According to IMD criteria, for any place where the temperature plummets below 10 degrees Celsius, a 'cold day' is declared when the maximum temperature fluctuation remains 4.5 to 6.4 degrees Celsius below normal, while a 'severe cold day' is when the departure exceeds 6.5 degrees Celsius.
Districts including Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Bareilly, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Noida, Gorakhpur, Ayodhya, Sultanpur, Rae Bareli, Sitapur, Hardoi, Etawah, Mainpuri, Aligarh, and Mathura are among those likely to be affected by dense fog and cold day conditions, the IMD said.
The weather office has advised people to take precautions, especially during early morning hours, and urged authorities to remain alert as low visibility could disrupt road, rail, and air traffic.
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