Cold tightens grip on Raj, claims 1 life

Jaipur, Jan 7: Sweeping icy winds caused mercury to plummet in the desert state on Tuesday, disrupting vehicular traffic and train services and claiming the life of an elderly beggar in Shastri Nagar area here, police said.

A 60-year-old beggar was found dead on the street of Painter colony this morning, SHO Kishore Singh said, adding that his body was sent to mortuary.

According to a North Western Railway spokesperson, 11 trains were running late and one had to be rescheduled due to foggy weather. Vehicles were also moving at snail's pace on the state's highways due to poor visibility.

With night temperatures plunging by almost five notches below normal at most places, ground frost occurred in Bharatpur, Alwar, Kota, Srigangangar, Hanumangarh, Jaipur, Churu and Sikar damaging stand Rabi crop especially wheat and mustard.

Dense fog caused inconvenience in Hadauti region, slowing down rail and road traffic. Temperature dipped to 0.5 degrees Celsius in Mount Abu, followed by Churu which shivered at 1.2 degrees Celsius.

Sriganganagar recorded a night temperature of 1.7 degrees Celsius, while Pilani had a low of 3.4 degrees, followed by Jaipur - 5.2 degrees, Jodhpur - 5.4 degrees, Dabok - 6.8 degrees, Chittorgarh - 6.9 degrees and Ajmer - 7 degrees Celsius.

PTI