Representative image of Punjab's foggy winters  PC: File Photo
Punjab

Fog tightens its grip across Punjab; Rain likely in border districts later this week

From Dec 17 to 20, dense to very dense fog is expected to sweep across most districts of Punjab, prompting yellow and orange alerts.

Thick Fog is expected in Northern India, and might stick around across Punjab and Haryana in the coming days. Punjab is witnessing colder than normal nights. Punjab is waking up to foggy and chilly mornings. As per IMD report morning views could get hazy, making travel risky on roads; trains and flights may face delays too.

Minimum temperatures in Punjab

The IMD update on 17 December says low temperatures hovered from 7 to 11°C at main spots like Chandigarh, Amritsar, Ludhiana, or Patiala - roughly 0.5 up to 3.6°C higher than usual across the region.

The coldest temp in Punjab was witnessed at Hoshiarpur AWS - just 6.7°C - so it's chilly, yet nowhere near a harsh freeze.

Punjab forecast: Fog and light rain

Across much of Punjab, thick fog’s expected between Dec 17- 20, several spots facing yellow or orange alerts due to poor visibility. While some regions see heavy haze, others deal with near-zero clarity at times during this stretch.

Light rain is expected to show up at places like Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran, or spots close by - on Dec 20 and 21, though most parts of Punjab should stay mostly clear.

Haryana forecast: Dense fog spell

As the weather forecast shared by the IMD chandigarh, aread in Punjab may show thick to extremely thick fog across many areas - especially at Ambala, Yamunanagar, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Panipat, Hisar, Rohtak, Gurugram, and Faridabad. The yellow and orange warnings are issued by IMD for Dec 17, 18 and 19, due to yellow and orange warnings.

On 21 December, most areas showed green on the alert maps issued by the IMD report  - hinting conditions are getting better, with little or no fog likely once the outlook ends.

Likely effect - also what to do about it

Dense fog often cuts visibility, so crashes become more likely - meanwhile, trains and planes face delay, diversions and even cancellations in northern India, especially after the sunsets.

It is advisable to stay off roads when fog’s thickest - go slow with headlights if you are travelling. It is also advisable to keep kids and older folks cozy since damp air, little wind, and pale sun make it feel chilly even if temperatures aren’t dropping sharply. 

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