A toddler in its winter regalia. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya

Calcutta experienced its coldest day of the season on Sunday, with the minimum temperature dipping to 10.8 degrees Celsius, four degrees below normal.

In Dum Dum, the minimum temperature was 9.7 degrees. The normal minimum temperatures in Calcutta and Dum Dum in early February are 15 and 14 degrees, respectively.

As on Saturday, the city had a close brush with a cold wave on Sunday, as the minimum temperature was only four degrees below normal. In meteorological parlance, a cold wave prevails when the minimum temperature is at least five degrees below normal during winter.

“Sunday was the coldest day of the season so far. The minimum temperature may rise from Monday because of an approaching western disturbance,” said G.C. Debnath, the director of the weather section at Regional Meteorological Centre, Alipore.

On December 31, the minimum temperature was 11.4 degrees, the second lowest in the season so far.

The Met office did not issue any fresh cold wave warning for Calcutta and the rest of south Bengal.

A cold wave condition prevailed in parts of Burdwan and Birbhum on Sunday. The minimum temperature in Burdwan’s Panagarh was 6.2 degrees and in Birbhum’s Sriniketan, 8.4 degrees.

“The cold wave in some parts of south Bengal is expected to abate from Monday. The hills of Darjeeling and Sikkim may experience light rain or snowfall till Monday noon. In the north Bengal districts, the chill is expected to continue for the next 48 hours,” said Debnath.

The untimely cold spell has resulted in a spurt in the sale of woollens, which is unusual around this time of the year.

Moin Ahmed, who has a stall on the pavement of Subodh Mullick Square, said: “The sudden chill has boosted our sales. Normally, we sell warm garments at a discount in the first week of February to clear our stock. But this year, we are selling at the usual price.”

Mohammad Sabir, another seller on the pavement, said: “Our sales this season have been 30 per cent more compared with the previous season.”

The effect has also been felt in the sale of beverages. “In the past few days, the demand for coffee has gone up by 60 per cent, which is phenomenal. Cappuccino and Cafe Latte are the most preferred varieties,” said Naveen Pai, of Coffee Pai.

A Cafe Coffee Day spokesperson said the demand has gone up by five per cent.