Himachal under cold spell; mercury rises in Punjab, Haryana

New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) Chilly winds today kepttemperatures low in Himachal Pradesh, while the plains ofPunjab and Haryana saw mercury levels rising above normal.

Delhiites enjoyed another pleasant day with the low at9.5 deg C, a degree below normal and marginally up fromyesterday''s minimum of 9.3 deg C, while the maximum was at23.5 deg C, up from yesterday''s 22.8 deg C.

The minimum temperatures rose marginally in mid andhigher hills of Himachal, but chilly winds continued to sweepthe region and kept people numb.

Dharamsala was coldest in the mid-hills with minimumtemperature at 3.5 deg C, while the state capital Shimla andSundernagar recorded a low of 5.8 deg C each.

Solan, Bhuntar, Una and Palampur recorded a low of 4deg C, 5.2 deg C and 5.7 deg C and 6.5 deg C. Keylong intribal Lahaul and Spiti district was slightly warmer withminimum temperatures rising to minus 13.9 deg C fromyesterday''s minus 17.6 deg C.

The maximum recorded in Una and Solan was 22 deg C,21.1 deg C at Sundernagar and Nahan, 20.6 deg C at Mandi and19.8 deg C at Bhuntar.

Avalanche threat persisted in high-altitude areas asmelting of snow with gradual rise in mercury could triggermassive snow slips.

The minimum temperature rose by upto two deg C abovenormal in several parts of Punjab and Haryana even as a fewareas in the region were engulfed in fog this morning.

The minimum temperature hovered between two deg Cabove normal to one deg C below normal in Punjab and Haryana.

Narnaul was the coldest place in the plains with a lowof 5.7 deg C, which was one notch below normal. While the lowat Bhiwani settled at 7.4 deg C, the minimum at Amritsar was7.5 deg C, one notch above normal.

Among other places, the low at Hisar and Karnalsettled at an identical 7.6 deg C, one notch each belownormal. Patiala recorded a low of 8.9 deg C, one notch abovenormal, followed by 9.6 deg C at Chandigarh, two notches abovenormal and 10.8 deg C at Ambala.

Few places, including Amritsar, Karnal and Rohtak, hadfog in the morning.