Minimum temperatures across several parts of West Bengal edged up slightly on Friday, offering residents brief relief from the prevailing cold conditions, as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast a rise of two to four degrees Celsius in the southern districts over the next two days.
However, the IMD said minimum temperatures in the sub-Himalayan districts are expected to gradually decline by two to three degrees Celsius from Sunday.
The department also indicated that light rain or snow is likely at one or two places in Darjeeling district on Saturday.
According to the Met office, dry weather is most likely to prevail across West Bengal over the next seven days, although shallow to moderate fog may occur during the morning hours at a few locations.
Darjeeling recorded the lowest minimum temperature in the state at 4.4 degrees Celsius on Friday, the IMD said.
In the plains, Suri in Birbhum district was the coldest location, registering a minimum temperature of 8 degrees Celsius.
Other areas that reported minimum temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius included Baharampur (8.4), Uluberia (8.6), Sriniketan (8.8), Kalyani (8.9), Krishnanagar (9.2) and Raiganj (9.5), according to Met department data.
Kolkata recorded a minimum temperature of 13.1 degrees Celsius, marking a slight increase from Thursday’s 11.6 degrees Celsius, the Met office said.