The capital and its adjoining areas woke up to a grey and overcast sky today. Throughout Thursday, Kolkata experienced a persistent light shower on and off and foggy conditions, making many people stay indoors in the winter chill. For some, it was working as usual, though a frequent conversation starter everywhere was the weather.
Even though the minimum temperature increased to 16.3 degrees Celsius — three degrees higher than Wednesday — the maximum temperature remained at around 19 degrees Celsius, causing a perceptible chill in the atmosphere.
Chances Of Rain And Fog Likely To Increase Over The Night
“Gradually, chances of rainfall are expected to increase in Howrah, Hooghly, and Kolkata. The cloudy sky will partially change by the next day, and moderate fog will continue to occur for the next two days,” a Regional Meteorological Department official reported. “Early morning, around 6.30 am, the visibility reduced to 800 meters and even 500 metres in some places. Gradually, it improved to 1,500-1,600 meters as the day progressed. After sunset, as the night progresses, the fog will bring it down once again to below 1,000 metres,” said the official.
Mercury To Drop In Districts As Well
Dense fog is not limited to Kolkata and Howrah alone. It has also enveloped southern parts of West Bengal, including the districts of Hooghly, East and West Midnapore, South and North 24 Parganas, Jhargram, East and West Bardhaman, Birbhum, Bankura, Purulia, and Nadia.
Meanwhile in the hills, in the northern reaches of Darjeeling, the nighttime temperatures are expected to go down to 2.6 degrees Celsius, further dropping from the 4 -5 degrees Celsius that is currently prevailing in the region. Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, North and South Dinajpur, Kalimpong, Alipurduar, Coochbehar, and Malda are all expected to witness dense fog, light rain or snowfall, as per the weatherman.
Though improved weather is expected tomorrow as per the forecast, the haze and chill are expected to carry on for the next couple of days.
Bengali