11.4 degrees: Mumbai feels the chill

“We expect the weather to remain cold for next few days. But this phenomenon will continue only till December end. In January, the days are expected to get warmer,” said IMD Mumbai chief V K Rajeev.

While Santacruz recorded 11.4 degrees Celsius on Thursday, the minimum temperature recorded at Colaba was 17.2 degrees. The maximum temperatures also remained relatively low at 28.3 degrees in Santacruz and 27.3 degrees in Colaba. It dipped lower than Wednesday when 11.6 degrees Celsius was recorded with chilly winds blowing at night.

The temperatures in Mumbai remained lower than several districts in Maharashtra, including hill station Mahabaleshwar. The minimum temperature hovered around 20 degrees Celsius in Kolhapur, Satara, Solapur, Chandrapur, Wardha and Osmanabad districts.

“The temperature may dip further,” said Rajeev. He added that the sudden chill in air was due to the northerly winds blowing over from colder regions of North India. With the dip in temperature for over a week now, doctors have also noticed a gradual rise in cough and cold cases. “A lot of patients with influenza-like symptoms are coming to me. They are complaining of chest pain, sore throat and back pain, which are common viral symptoms,” said Dr Behram Pardiwala, a general physician.

According to general physician Dr Shahid Barmare, cases of viral gastroenteritis have also increased, with two to three patients approaching him every day.