Take a chill pill: Experts to farmers

Chilly winters may have forced people to stay indoors but north Indian farmers have enough reasons to feel warm as agriculture experts feel the biting cold won’t have any adverse effect on their crops.

“Farmers have nothing to worry as these chilly winters are perfectly normal,” agriculturist Devinder Sharma told DNA.

“Instead this weather is good for some fruit crops like apple. There is nothing harmful for crops like wheat,” Sharma said.

“Fog’s adverse effects will be on small fruit plants or small plants that are kept in nurseries. But anyways, farmers are well aware as to how to save their crops. They know precautions that need to be taken,” he added.

Compared to last few years, winter across north India has apparently been quite chilly and mostly all the major cities have witnessed low temperatures and fog.

Dense fog enveloped most parts of Punjab, Haryana on Monday and mercury remained below the normal level. Rajasthan also reeled from icy cold winds and fog with temperature remaining between 0.4-5 degrees celsius. Higher areas in Himachal Pradesh experienced another spell of mild snowfall on Monday while cold wave continued to lash Jammu and Kashmir.

Uttar Pradesh has already recorded over 80 deaths due to severe winter this season.

On Sunday, Delhi recorded its coldest day in the last five years with the maximum sliding to 11 degree celsius, and minimum to five degree celsius. The minimum temperature in the national capital recorded on Monday was 4.7 degree celsius.