Intense cold to continue in Odisha till January 15

BHUBANESWAR: Odisha is in the grip of an unrelenting cold wave as mercury plunged below 10 degree Celsius across 13 places on Sunday. The bad news, though, is the prediction by the weather office that biting cold conditions would continue till January 15. Even as a low pressure has formed over the Bay of Bengal, it is unlikely to impact the cold conditions.

Daringibadi in Kandhamal district was the coldest place where the mercury plunged to 3 degree Celsius on the day. At district headquarters town of Phulbani, the minimum temperature read 4.5 degree C.

Central and western districts such as Angul, Dhenkanal, Kandhamal, Sambalpur, Jharsuguda and Balangir bore the brunt of the cold wave as night temperature remained either unchanged or declined since the beginning of the week.

Northern districts of Sundargarh, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Balasore and Bhadrak also faced similar conditions. Many parts of coastal Odisha have also reported cold nights. Bhubaneswar recorded 13 degree C on Sunday. The India Meteorological Department said minimum temperature in the State has remained three to five degree Celsius below normal.

“This year, the cold conditions have persisted for a longer time. In the past, cold waves used to last for three to four days before being punctuated by warmer spells. This time, it has lasted for about seven days. It will continue till January 14-15,” Director, IMD, Odisha Sarat Chandra Sahu said. The weather office attributes the persistent cold conditions to absence of Western Disturbance. Formation of Western Disturbance triggers rain in northern India and moisture incursion leads to a drop in temperature, Sahu said. However, the frequency of Western Disturbance has been less this time which is why the biting conditions have not abated. With wind pattern remaining north-westerly, Odisha has felt the pinch.

Though a low pressure area prevails over the Bay of Bengal, it would only lead to moisture incursion in the upper atmospheric levels because of south-easterly wind. However, in lower and surface atmosphere, it would cause foggy conditions but north-westerly and westerly wind would only intensify cold. The system may lead to a rise in temperature but only by 0.5 degree C to 1 degree C over some places. Moreover, it would just be for a day or two. Sahu said such cold conditions were not reported in Odisha in the last several years.