A thin layer of ice has formed over the Dal Lake in Srinagar as cold weather conditions coupled with dense fog gripped North India on Tuesday, disrupting train services and vehicular movement.

Residents of the national capital experienced a windy morning on Tuesday. The minimum temperature settled a notch above normal at 8.3 degrees Celsius.

The India Meteorological Department said there was dense to moderate fog in isolated pockets of Delhi.

According to the Indian Railways, 26 Delhi-bound trains were delayed by one to six hours due to fog.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) was in the 'very poor' category with a reading of 346 at 6.30 am, according to Central Pollution Control Board data.

December 2023 was the national capital's warmest in six years, with the city not recording a single 'coldwave day' during the month.

Dense fog blanketed many parts of Rajasthan in the morning, disrupting vehicular traffic.

Visibility was recorded at 50 metres at the Jaipur airport.

Cold conditions prevailed in some parts of the desert state with the minimum settling at 4.5 degrees Celsius in Sikar, 4.8 degrees in Phalodi, 5.2 degrees in Karauli, 5.4 degrees in Jaisalmer, 5.7 degrees in Pilani, 6 degrees in Sirohi and 6.4 degrees in Dholpur, while Jaipur recorded a low of 6.8 degrees Celsius.

Many parts of Punjab and Haryana experience cold weather conditions, with Bathinda reeling at 7 degrees Celsius. Patiala registered a low of 7.8 degrees Celsius.

According to the Met office's weather report, Amritsar recorded a low of 8.3 degrees Celsius, Ludhiana 8 degrees Celsius and Faridkot 8.2 degrees Celsius.

Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states, recorded a low of 9 degrees Celsius.

In Haryana, Hisar recorded a low of 7.2 degrees Celsius while the minimum temperature in Karnal was at 8 degrees Celsius.

Met officials said fog was experienced at many places in the two states early on Tuesday.

Dense fog, mostly during the morning, had enveloped the region last week.

Maximum temperatures in the region have also witnessed a sharp drop during the past two days The minimum temperature in the Kashmir Valley remained below the freezing point, recording minus 4.8 degrees Celsius on Monday night.

The residents of the lake, who live in houseboats, had a tough time breaking the ice layer while roving their boats towards the banks.

Water supply pipes have frozen in many areas of Kashmir due to extreme cold wave conditions.

Pahalgam in south Kashmir's Anantnag district, which serves as one of the base camps for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a minimum temperature of minus 6.2 degrees Celsius, down from the previous night's minus 5.7 degrees Celsius.

The tourist destination of Gulmarg in north Kashmir recorded a low of minus 4 degrees Celsius.

Kashmir is currently under the grip of 'Chilla-i-Kalan' -- the 40-day harshest winter period when a cold wave grips the region and the temperature drops considerably leading to the freezing of water bodies, including the Dal Lake as well as the water supply lines in several parts of the valley.

The chances of snowfall are the highest during this period and most areas, especially the higher reaches, receive heavy snowfall.

In Uttar Pradesh, the weather remained dry during the last 24 hours with one or two parts of the state experiencing dense to very dense fog.

The Met office in Lucknow said cold wave conditions prevailed at some places in eastern Uttar Pradesh and one or two places in western part of the state.

Day temperatures in Kanpur, Bareilly, Moradabad, Meerut, Ayodhya, Lucknow, Agra and Meerut divisions among others remained much below the normal limits.

Shahjahanpur with 5.2 degrees celsius recorded the lowest temperature in the state while Banda with 22.6 degree celsius registered the maximum temperature, it said.

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