Patna, Jan. 17: The hazy morning sky residents woke up to on Saturday proved deceptive as it cleared off by afternoon, a wind of moderately high speed helping lift the veil of thick fog.

Weathermen claimed a clear and bright sky was expected in the afternoon hours henceforth, but the prevailing cold weather conditions would stay for at least another week.

The region had been overshadowed by shallow clouds on Friday but met experts claimed it had cleared off by the early hours of Saturday. The clouds left behind high level of moisture, which led to the formation of fog in lower troposphere (up to 8-10km above the earth's surface). The fog cover blocked out the solar rays and caused shivery conditions.

'There are no clouds as such over Bihar today (Saturday). However, the level of moisture in the atmosphere is quite high that mixed with low temperature and windy conditions led to the formation of a cloud-like layer in the lower troposphere in the morning. Such conditions are expected over the next two-three days as well but the sky would clear up around 11am. The overall weather conditions would however be cold,' said R.K. Giri, senior meteorologist at the Patna meteorological centre.

Giri claimed that the minimum temperature over the next week was expected to be around 11-12ºC and the maximum to be around 20-22ºC. Westerly winds are expected to blow at an average speed of 8-9kmph for now, which would lead to shivery conditions.

The hide-and-seek between the clouds and the sun coupled with the shivery weather today had no impact on the adrenaline rush among hundreds of kite enthusiasts, who thronged Sabbalpur diara, the sandbar in the Ganga to soak in the revelry of the kite festival on its concluding day.

Vivek Kumar Singh, principal secretary, environment and forests, was spotted having fun with kites along with his son and daughter at the sandbar today.

Vivek, an enthusiastic kite flier, shared some of his cherished memories related to kite-flying from his childhood days. 'When we were in school, we used to fly kites at the big grounds in Kankerbagh. I believe flying kites has several health benefits as well like exercise of the hand and the neck. This is especially beneficial for kids these days, who normally spend hours watching television,' said Vivek.

Sabbalpur diara is around 2km diagonally opposite Gandhi Ghat and Kali Ghat. Starting from 2010, it was developed as a tourism hub during winter by the Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation (BSTDC).

Sources claimed that forest secretary Vivek had initially floated the idea of developing the sandbar as a hangout destination for residents. 'In the late-1990s, many senior state government officers used to go to a similar sandbar in the Ganga in the Danapur area for picnic on weekends.

However, mostly government officials used it. Thus, I had suggested developing a similar sandbar for common residents. I am glad to see the same at Sabbalpur diara,' said Vivek.