Cold wave continues, toll crosses 150

The piercing cold wave in Northern India continued to claim lives, with 34 more deaths overnight in Uttar Pradesh, pushing the countrywide toll to over 150 on Tuesday.

People shivered in the cold even as a dense fog disrupted train and flight schedules.

Uttar Pradesh bore the brunt of the harsh winter, as authorities were forced to shut schools till January 15 in many districts.

Kanpur experienced the coldest day in 12 years with the mercury plummeting to 3.2 degrees Celsius as icy winds blew across the state confining people indoors.

Eleven people have so far succumbed to biting cold in Bihar, the coldest place being the Buddhist pilgrimage center, Bodh Gaya.

Delhi continued to reel under the severe cold with the temperature plunging to 6.1 degree Celsius. Eleven domestic, one international and two cargo flights were diverted due to dense fog engulfing the capital since Monday night.

The fog also affected rail traffic with 45 trains, both Delhi-bound and outgoing, running behind schedule.

The cold wave did not spare Himachal Pradesh, claiming its first victim, a resident of Dari village, some 3 kms from Dharamshala on Tuesday.

The wave continued unabated in the state with mercury hovering between minus 12 and 18 degrees Celsius in the tribal valleys of Lahaul and Spiti.

In Punjab, three persons had died of cold since Monday evening, and the mercury fell to four degrees Celsius in Amritsar, which experienced the coldest day of the season.

In Chandigarh, which recorded a low of 7.4 degrees Celsius, the sun was hardly seen for most part of the day.

EARLIER REPORT:
Countrywide toll in cold wave nears 120