Bhubaneswar: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Monday issued a cold wave warning for four districts of Odisha, including state capital Bhubaneswar, as temperatures dipped sharply across several regions. G Udaygiri in Kandhamal district recorded the lowest temperature in the state at 5.4°C.
In its mid-day bulletin, the IMD issued a Yellow Warning (be aware) for Jharsuguda, Khurda, Sundergarh and Kandhamal districts, cautioning that cold wave conditions are likely to persist till Tuesday morning.
Cold wave conditions gripped Cuttack, Bhubaneswar and Angul on Sunday night. Jharsuguda experienced a severe cold wave on Monday morning, with the mercury plunging to 9.8°C—6.7 degrees below normal.
Bhubaneswar recorded its coldest November night in 25 years on Sunday, with temperatures falling to 12.9°C, which is 6.1 degrees below normal. Neighbouring Cuttack registered 13.2°C, while Angul dipped to 10.2°C—7.3 degrees below the seasonal average.
After G Udaygiri, Semiliguda in Koraput (6.1°C) and Daringbadi (7°C) emerged among the coldest places in the state. Several other regions witnessed temperatures below 12°C, including Rourkela (10°C), Chipilima in Bargarh (10.2°C), Koraput (10.8°C), Kirei in Sundergarh, Keonjhar and Bhawanipatna (11°C each), Nabarangpur (11.5°C), and Sundergarh town (11.8°C).
According to the IMD, minimum temperatures across the state have shown no significant change, but remain markedly below normal by about 5 to 7 degrees Celsius.
The sudden onset of winter has disrupted normal life in many parts of Odisha. The cold wave has been triggered by a steady inflow of dry and frigid north-westerly winds from northern India.
