Bhubaneswar: Odisha remained firmly under the grip of cold wave for the third consecutive day on Sunday as the mercury plummeted to 5.8°C at G Udayagiri, a hill station in Kandhamal.
While Semiluguda in Koraput was the second coldest place in the state at 7.4°C, two more places in Kandhamal – Daringbadi (8°C) and Phulbani (9°C), recorded night temperature below 10°C. The night temperature was 4.6 notches below normal in Phulbani.
Angul at 10.6°C, however, saw the highest drop of 7.2°C from normal, followed by Jharsuguda (10.6°C), where the night reading was 6.5 notches below normal.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), cold wave prevailed in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack and the twin cities recorded the season’s lowest temperature of 13°C, 6.4°C below normal, and 13.4°C, 5.3°C below normal, respectively this morning.
“The night temperature was markedly below normal by about 5-7.°C at a few places in North Interior Odisha and coastal Odisha, appreciably below normal by about 3-5°C at many places across the state and below normal by about 2-3°C elsewhere,” it said.
While the minimum temperature across the state may witness no large change during the next 3-4 days, the weather agency has issued a cold wave warning for Cuttack, Jharsuguda, Khurda, Sundargarh, Angul and Kandhamal till Monday morning. The mercury is likely to hover around 13°C in both Bhubaneswar and Cuttack during the next 3 days and then rise to 14-15°C in the subsequent two days.
The IMD has warned of an increase in illnesses like flu, running/ stuffy nose or nosebleed following prolonged exposure to cold. Impact on agriculture, crop, livestock, water supply, transport and power sector is also likely at some places. People have been advised to wear several layers of loose fitting, light weight; warm woollen clothing rather than one layer of heavy cloth. “Cover your head, neck, hands and toes adequately as the majority of heat loss occurs through these body parts. Eat vitamin-C rich fruits & vegetables and drink sufficient fluids preferably warm fluids to maintain adequate immunity. Avoid or limit outdoor activities during early morning and late evening hours. Protect livestock from cold weather,” it added.