Severe cold conditions in north India claimed 120 lives even as night-long snowfall in the upper reaches of Kashmir cut off the valley from rest of the country for the second day on Monday.
Uttar Pradesh accounted for the bulk of 110 deaths this winter, while Bihar reported eight deaths and Haryana two.
Around 40 persons died in different parts of Uttar Pradesh since last night as intense cold conditions continued to grip the state, officials said in Lucknow.
While light showers in parts of Rajasthan led to a further dip in temperature in the desert state, the national capital, which had a clear sky, experienced icy winds blowing from the snowcapped northern mountains though the minimum temperature rose slightly.
Traffic on the 300-km Srinagar-Jammu national highway, the arterial link between Kashmir and rest of the country, remained suspended while poor visibility at Srinagar international airport affected air operations this morning.
Cold wave swept Himachal Pradesh where the higher reaches experienced heavy snowfall.
While rains lashed the lower areas, breaking the long dry spell and bringing cheer to farmers ahead of Rabi sowing, Shimla had a sunny morning after a night temperature of 2.1 deg C. A large number of tourists thronged Kufri, 16 km from here, to enjoy the season’s first snowfall.
In Uttarakhand, rains and snowfall intensified the cold conditions affecting normal life.
The national capital recorded a minimum temperature of 9.6 deg C against yesterday’s minimum of 9.5 deg C. Morning mist reduced visibility to 1,000 metres but there was no disruption in flight operations at the IGI airport
