Cold air in the wake of western disturbance has left the state of Punjab reeling under severe cold over the last 48 hours. Icy cold winds blowing down the slopes of Dhauladhar ranges has penetrated the state, more so Majha and Western Malwa region. The freeze will continue till the saviour western disturbance arrives on the weekend.
Punjab shares a long stretch of foothills with Himachal Pradesh, extending from Pathankot to Ropar-Mohali. Majha region, spaced between rivers Ravi and Beas becomes vulnerable to extreme cold. Pathankot, Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Tarn Taran bear the brunt of winter cold. Further down, western Malwa region, somewhat arid, in the close proximity of Rajasthan witness excruciating cold. Bhatinda, Fazilka, Firozepur and Muktsar mostly record low single digit temperature during January.
Mercury has plunged during past 24hr over entire state. Even Doaba region, separated by rivers Beas and Sutlej, has dipped below 5Deg Celsius. Jalandhar experienced cold day and cold wave condition with maximum and minimum temperature being 15.9 deg and 4.1deg respectively. Coldest place was Bhatinda, nearly freezing with 0.4deg, the lowest of season so far. Pathankot, Amritsar and Firozpur joined the club of cold wave stations with minimum temperature plummeting to 3.4deg, 3.4deg and 3.1 deg respectively. Cold day conditions were observed at Jalandhar, Patiala and Mohali, with the day maximum just not lifting beyond 16deg.
The cold snap will continue till 07th Jan. Intensity and spread of freeze may increase over this period. Western disturbance is likely to arrive on 07th Jan, albeit impacting mostly the mountains and foothills. Minimum temperatures are expected to rise above 5 degree, across the state, at least for few days and freeze again thereafter.