Guwahati, Jan. 10: The weather seems to be in sync with the festivities, finally, as Assam braces for Bhogali Bihu, the occasion for feasting.

The weather bulletin of the India Meteorological department issued by its office here today predicted foggy mornings and nippy evenings in the run-up to uruka on Friday and Magh Bihu the day after.

The forecast for Assam tomorrow is light rain and shallow fog at isolated places while the day after will see dry weather with shallow to moderate fog at isolated places. On uruka and Magh Bihu, the weather will remain dry. Temperatures in the state will vary between 9 and 27 degrees Celsius over the next four days.

Sources in the Met office said the average maximum temperatures this winter have been higher across the Northeast than in previous years.

Asked why the winter has lost its sting, Regional Meteorological Centre director Sanjay O'Neill Shaw said, "Western disturbances have not been as extensive as in previous years. Besides, the northwesterly winds, which augur the chill, have been absent."

Cyclonic circulation over the Bay of Bengal and its adjacent areas has prevented the flow of the northwesterly winds to the region.

But the Met forecast today is set to cheer festive revellers in what was been one of the "drier and warmer" winters in the region.

The maximum temperature dipped today in Guwahati by two degrees, with people gathering around roadside fires during the daytime itself.

The sun failed to penetrate the layers of cloud in the afternoon, as the day by and large remained foggy with traces of rain in pockets by late afternoon.

"The fact that the chill is finally here is a relief as this winter has been warmer than in the past. We have erected a 130-feet meji (dome-like structure lit for prayers on the day after uruka) at Sontola Barkuchi Chowk near Mirza. We anticipate more people to assemble near the structure on the morning of Magh Bihu," Niren Mali, a member of a leading socio-cultural club of south Kamrup, said.

A number of bhela ghar (traditional houses made of bamboo, hay/banana leaf and wood), of various shapes and sizes, some replicating the Rang Ghar, Kamakhya and even the Titanic, are being made across the state.

"The nip will add to the flavour of the feast inside a bhela ghar. It's time to gorge on piping hot Bihu goodies," a delighted Animesh Sharma of Nagaon said, as he prepared to leave the city for his hometown for an extended break.

The Jorhat district administration is holding a special market to sell food products by farmers on the district agriculture office premises on Thursday. No fees will be charged from farmers for putting up stalls in the market.