A warm and sunny Sunday prompted many to step outdoors.
Science City and Eco Park were among the popular destinations.
“There is no other place like Science City where children can enjoy and learn at the same time,” said Sagar Das, 36, who came with his wife, eight-year-old daughter and a couple of other relatives.
“It’s a pleasant day to be outdoors with my family. We have been here for nearly two hours,” said the Barrackpore resident.
The ropeway area witnessed long queues, while the Evolution Park, Dynamotion Hall and Space Theatre also drew a lot of visitors, particularly children.
Many children were seen playing badminton in the lawns of the park on Sunday. Once in a while, visitors paused at a shaded area.
Not without reason.
The day was consistently warm. The maximum temperature went up to 25.2 degrees on Sunday from 24 degrees on Saturday. It was still slightly below normal. But because of the consistently cold mornings and afternoons for most of January 2026, Sunday afternoon felt hotter than the Met readings showed.
An active Western Disturbance is hampering the free flow of northwesterly winds into south Bengal, said a Met official. Warmer days and nights are in store, according to the Met forecast.
“The minimum temperature in Calcutta, which was around 13 degrees on Sunday, is expected to reach around 16 degrees by the middle of the week. The maximum will range between 25 and 27 degrees,” said the official.
Around 3.30pm at Eco Park, the water sports section had long queues, with visitors waiting 15 to 20 minutes for their turn. Many were seen eating ice cream, walking along the lake or relaxing on the lawns in light winter clothing on Sunday.
In the first week of January, two or more layers of warm clothes were visible on the revellers.
“We have been waiting in the queue for more than 15 minutes. The sky looks much clearer today, which is why we opted for water sports. Earlier, the days were chilly, but now the temperature seems to have settled,” said Ekta Brar, 34, who was waiting with her family for a water sports ride.
Eating out was a popular choice. The Park Street restaurants had people waiting outside till late afternoon.
“Beer sales had been down for much of January because of the extreme chill. On Sunday afternoon, some of the patrons opted for chilled beer,” said Sudesh Poddar, owner of Manthan, Songhai and MS Bar and Lounge.
At the Alipore zoo, the lion, tiger and crocodile enclosures were the most crowded.
“We came mainly for our grandson, who is four years old,” said Swapan Bhattacharya, 75, who visited the zoo with his family. “Winter sun makes it comfortable,” said the
Sovabazar resident.
Around 1pm, small groups were seen playing cricket on the Maidan, while a handful of families lay out picnic mats.
“Such open spaces are rare now,” said Kazim Manirul, who came from Topsia with his four-year-old son. “We try to come here often,” he said.