Cold wave continues to sweep over N Bengal and Sikkim

SNS, Siliguri, 3 January 2014: Piercing cold wave continued to sweep north Bengal and Sikkim with temperatures hovering several notches below normal even as fog reduced visibility throughout the day, causing flight cancellations and train delays in the region.

According to the met office in Kolkata, freezing cold swept the Hills of north Bengal today. The maximum and minimum temperatures in Darjeeling were 9.4 and 1 degrees Celsius and the minimum temperature in Kalimpong plummeted to 2 degrees Celsius, a met office spokesperson said.

The North Bengal University Weather Service Station convener, Mr Subir Sarkar, informed that Friday was one of the coldest days of the season in Siliguri. “Today was one the coldest day of the season. The maximum temperature was 18.5 degrees Celcius, three-and-half notches below normal. The minimum temperature was 11 degrees Celsius,” he said.

According to Mr Gopi Nath Rath, in-charge, Meteorological Department, Gangtok, severe cold swept Gangtok today. “Gangtok reeled under extreme cold today. The maximum temperature dipped a notch below normal to stay at 10 degrees for most of the day. The minimum temperature was 6 degrees Celsius,” he said.

The Bagdogra airport had to cancel four flights due to the dense fog that blanketed Siliguri and its outskirts today. The airport director Mr KK Bhowmick informed that they had to cancel Air-India’s Delhi-Bagdogra-Delhi flight, IndiGo’s Bengaluru-Kolkata-Bagdogra-Guwahati-Mumbai flight and the Kolkata-Bagdogra-Kolkata and Delhi-Bagdogra-Guwahati-Delhi flights of SpiceJet as the flights could not land at the airport due to heavy fog.

According to the chief public relations officer, North-East Frontier Railway, Mr Sugata Lahiri, a number of trains were delayed today due to poor visibility.