Winter is yet to arrive in Calcutta and the chill in the air is due to the unseasonal rains that drenched the city earlier this week, a weather official said on Saturday.

A minimum temperature of below 15 degrees Celsius is considered winter in the city, he said.

The city's temperature ranged between 18 degrees Celsius and 25 degrees Celsius over the last 24 hours, he added.

"It will take some more days for the temperature to gradually decline. But, wintry conditions have already set in in some parts of West Bengal with the mercury dropping to 6.6 degrees Celsius in Darjeeling and 14.4 degrees in Purulia," the official said.

IMD Director (East) Sanjib Bandyopadhyay said the wintry conditions do not continue at a stretch in Calcutta, and the temperature fluctuates.

In the absence of any 'system' over the Bay of Bengal or 'western disturbances', the sky will remain clear across the state, he said.

In its bulletin, the IMD predicted snowfall in Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts over the next 24 hours. It also predicted foggy conditions in the plains.

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