The weather in parts of northwest India has changed to become pleasant as a Western Disturbance in Jammu and Kashmir travelled across Himachal Pradesh giving rain and snow in the region on 7th and 8th October. Snowfall was however, observed only in the higher reaches. Foothills of Punjab also received rain during this time and observed drop in temperatures.
On October 7, Srinagar, the state capital of Jammu and Kashmir observed 10.7 mm of rain, Rambagh 23 mm, Pahalgam 28 mm, Kulgam 26 mm, Anantnag 29 mm and Shopian 30 mm of rain.
In Himachal Pradesh, Dharamshala received 21 mm of rain, Chamba 14 mm, Kullu 11 mm, Manali 9 mm, Shimla 1.2 mm and Una 30 mm of rain on October 7. Some good rain was also observed in Punjab on the same day. Pathankot recorded 33 mm of rain, while Ludhiana and Patiala witnessed 15 mm and 2 mm of rain respectively.
The spell of rain has helped in pulling down the maximum temperature in the region by 5-6 degrees, while the minimum has dropped by almost 4 degrees. The morning minimum in Srinagar settled at 9.8 degrees celcius on October 9 against 10.1 degrees celcius on October 8.
Similar drop in temperatures have been observed in Himachal Pradesh. Manali recorded 7 degree celcius as the maximum on October 9 against 9.2 the previous day. Chamba too saw the minimum drop to 11.5 degrees celcius on October 9 from 14 degrees celcius on October 8.
In Punjab, Amritsar recorded 16.5 degrees celcius as the morning minimum on October 9 against 19.6 degrees celcius on October 8. The capital Chandigarh saw the minimum drop by almost 4 degrees to record 18.7 degrees celcius as the minimum temperature on October 9.
The impact of this weather system was also felt in Delhi as both maximum and minimum temperatures dropped marginally in the city. The Safdarjung Observatory recorded 35.2 degrees celcius as the maximum on Ocotber 8 against 36.6 degrees on October 7. The night temperature also dropped marginally to record 22.2 degrees celcius on October 9 against 24.9 degrees celcius on October 8.
The pleasant weather will last for another 48 hours after which cyclone Hudhud is likely to change the winds in the region to warm easterlies. Once the storm moves away we can expect temperatures to drop again. Probably we can have a pleasant Diwali with a flavour of chill in the night.
Picture courtesy: earlytimeplus
