Minimum temperature plunges but winter is still not here

KOLKATA: A morning chill descended on the city as the minimum temperature plunged to 19°C on Friday.

With the north-westerly winds getting chillier following snowfall in the Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh Himalayas, the cool spell would continue till at least Tuesday, the Met office predicted. But the drop in maximum temperature has not been sharp and it fell by merely a degree below normal to touch 30.1°C.

The city felt a slight shiver as the minimum temperature dropped two notches below normal. It brought an earlywinter feel, but the mercury would rise again, said weathermen. “It had been predicted that snowfall in Kashmir and Himachal earlier this week will turn the north-westerly cooler. It will be chilly through the weekend till at least Tuesday. Then the mercury will rise,” said RMC director G K Das.

But the sudden chill doesn’t indicate the arrival of winter. These were temperature fluctuations, added Das. “It doesn’t snow in early November. This time, it has been different. Winter onset isn’t declared unless the minimum temperature drops consistently to 15°C, which happens in mid-December,” he