Lowest max temp in Delhi in 5 yrs; cold toll reaches to 214

With 10 more cold-related deaths in Uttar Pradesh,the toll rose to 214 so far this winter.

Operations at the Indira Gandhi International airport here were disrupted due to dense fog for the second day affecting the schedule of over 50 flights.

While general visibility was reduced to zero,runway visibility hovered between 50 and 100 metres. Yesterday,about 100 flights were badly affected.

The fog also hit rail services as a number of trains were either cancelled for rescheduled.

Jammu and Kashmir experienced severe chill with Leh being the coldest part of the state where mercury dipped to minus 21 degree Celsius,followed by Kargil at minus 18 deg C.

The tourist resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir recorded a low of minus 6.8 deg C while night temperature in Srinagar slipped to minus 3.6 deg C.

Thick fog affected normal life in Punjab,Haryana and Chandigarh for the second day though the minimum temperature rose by up to four notches above normal at various places.

Amritsar was the coldest place with a low of minus 0.2 deg C,four notches below the normal,while Chandigarh recorded a minimum of 6.4 deg C.