Odisha alerts districts as IMD forecasts dense fog on Sunday; G Udayagiri coldest at 5.8 degC

With the IMD forecasting the prevalence of dense fog in various parts of Odisha on Sunday, Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Satyabrat Sahu has asked all the district collectors to heighten vigil and take measures to prevent road accidents in view of the prediction.

The SRC, in a letter to all the collectors on Friday night, asked police and transport officials of the districts to take necessary steps for controlled plying of vehicles on highways during foggy conditions to prevent any accident.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said dense foggy conditions will prevail in Puri, Khurda, Nayagarh, Ganjam, Gajapati, Sundergarh, Keonjhar, Angul, Dhenkanal, Cuttack, Kandhamal, Kalahandi, Rayagada and Koraput districts on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the state experienced a slight rise in minimum temperatures in the last 24 hours.

The mercury is likely to dip by another 2 degrees Celsius over the next 24 hours with no significant change thereafter for a few days, the Meteorological Centre, Bhubaneswar, said on Friday.

However, at least 10 places in the state recorded temperatures below the 10 degrees Celsius mark in the last 24 hours.G Udayagiri in Kandhamal district recorded the lowest temperature of 5.8 degrees Celsius on Saturday.

The area had recorded 4 degrees Celsius on Thursday and Friday.

On Saturday, G Udayagiri was followed by Phulbani (Kandhamal) at 7, Kirei (Sundargarh) at 7.7, Semiliguda (Koraput) and Daringbadi (Kandhamal) at 8 each, Keonjhar at 8.8, Sundargarh at 8.9, Angul and Nabarangpur at 9 each and Bhawanipatna (Kalahandi) at 9.5 degrees Celsius.

The twin cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack recorded 14.8 and 14.4 degrees Celsius respectively, the met office said.

The weather office said dense fog was witnessed in Koraput, reducing visibility to 50 metres. 

Bhawanipatna in Kalahandi district, Keonjhar and Rourkela in Sundergarh district also experienced shallow to moderate fog.