Get ready to face cold wave like conditions as Srinagar, Pahalgam and Gulmarg on Monday witnessed the minimum temperature settling below the freezing point while parts of Punjab, Haryana and northern Rajasthan are expected to experience it over the next two days. The minimum temperature is expected to fall further in northern India due to dry north westerly wind.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said Srinagar recorded the coldest night of the season so far at minus 1.6 degrees Celsius as cold conditions continued in Kashmir.
According to the IMD, weak La Nina conditions, which are also associated with colder winters in northwest India, are prevailing over the equatorial Pacific region. “The latest model forecast is indicating they are likely to strengthen and peak to moderate conditions during the winter season,” it said.
Several forecasters have predicted that north India may witness the chilliest/extremely cold winter due to the La Nina that has been emerging in the Pacific Ocean. The La Nina weather pattern causes frigid winters in the northern hemisphere. It is likely to hound parts of India with extremely cold winters. The new forecast warns of an impending La Nina effect that will lead to a major dip in temperature across north India in January, February 2022.
A cold wave is declared when there's a significant drop in minimum or night time temperature. The IMD's criterion for a cold wave in the plains is that the minimum temperature should be 10 degrees or lower and the departure from normal minimum temperature 4.5 degrees or less for two consecutive days.
India has been witnessing extreme weather conditions over the past few weeks. This can be attributed to various causes, including warming of the seas, unabated development and delayed withdrawal of the monsoon.