Weather update: IMD predicts very dense fog, severe cold, rains in THESE states till 6 Jan. Check forecast

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra addressed the monthly press conference for the monthly forecast for January. During the conference, weather office has cautioned about coldwave days in central parts of the country for January and forecast dense fog days over parts of northwest and east India till 4 January.

As per IMD, dense to very dense fog conditions have been predicted in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, North East India and several other states. As per IMD, dense to very dense fog conditions is very likely to prevail during night and morning hours in some parts over Punjab during 1st 5th January.

Dense to very dense fog conditions is also likely to prevail in some parts over Haryana & Chandigarh during 1st 3rd January, Uttarakhand during 2 6 January; East Rajasthan on 2nd and 3rd January; isolated pockets over West Rajasthan on 2nd and 3rd January. Dense Fog conditions is also predicted over Himachal Pradesh during 2nd 6th January; over Uttar Pradesh during 1 4 January; over Madhya Pradesh on 2nd January; Bihar, Gangetic West Bengal, Odisha, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura during 2nd 4th January and Sub Himalayan West Bengal & Sikkim and Jharkhand on 2nd and 3rd January.

In addition to this, the weather department has also predicted Cold Day to Severe Cold Day conditions in many parts over Punjab, Haryana on 2nd January and in some parts on 3rd January. Cold day conditions have also been predicted in isolated pockets on 4th and 5th January. As per IMD, conditions predicted in some parts over Uttar Pradesh and in isolated pockets over West Rajasthan on 1st and 2nd January while Cold Day conditions over East Rajasthan during 1st 3rd January, Madhya Pradesh on 2nd January and West Rajasthan on 3 January.

The weather department has predicted light to moderate rainfall over south Tamil Nadu, south Kerala and Lakshadweep during next 2 3 days with isolated heavy rainfall over Lakshadweep during 1 4 January, Kerala on 1st and 4 January. Moreover, light isolated rainfall has been predicted over Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh during 2 5 January and over Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha during 3 5 January.

While addressing a press conference on the monthly forecast for January, Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra also forecast normal rainfall during the January February March period, raising expectations for a better wheat crop during the rabi season. Mohapatra said 2023 was the second warmest year since 1901 as the annual mean air temperature for the country was 0.65 degree Celsius above normal.

The warmest year since 1901 was 2016 when the annual mean air temperature for the country was 0.710 degrees celsius above normal. During the conference, Mohapatra said the country as a whole received 60 percent excess rains in December. At 25.5 mm, received 60 per cent excess rains in December against the normal of 15.9 mm for the month, Mohapatra said.

South peninsular regions received 72.2 mm rainfall in December, which was 126 per cent excess than the normal 32 mm for the month, he added. The rainfall was 191 per cent more in Central India, which received 14.8 mm rains against the normal of 5.1 mm for December. However, in wheat growing northwest India, the rainfall was 65 per cent deficit than the normal rains of 18.9 mm, Mohapatra said.

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