State braces for foggy, cold New Year as dense fog blankets several regions

Patna: The state is bracing for a chilly and foggy start to 2026 with New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day expected to remain under cold and damp conditions. Dense fog is likely to envelop northern and south-western districts on Dec 31 while cold day conditions (when daytime temperatures remain markedly below normal) may prevail in several parts of the state. Patches of dense fog are also expected at one or two places in most districts.On Jan 1, moderate to dense fog is forecast in north-central, north-western, south-central and south-western regions at some places with isolated pockets in the north-eastern and south-eastern parts of Bihar, according to the IMD bulletin for the state. While overall weather conditions are expected to remain crisp, the combination of low temperatures and fog could pose challenges for outdoor New Year celebrations, particularly during early morning and late evening hours.Weathermen said minimum and maximum temperatures are likely to show little or no change over the next three to four days. Daytime temperatures are expected to range between 14 and 18 degrees C, while the minimum temperature could dip to as low as 8 degrees C in some areas.“Fog is anticipated mainly in the northern and central belts along with southern regions, tapering slightly by Jan 4 when it may confine to northern and south-eastern areas with isolated occurrences elsewhere,” said duty officer Kumar Gaurav.As per the weather bulletin, cold day conditions were recorded in Forbesganj and Nalanda on Monday. The highest maximum temperature in the state was 18.7 degrees C in Sheikhpura, while daytime temperatures across Bihar ranged between 13.2 degrees C and 18 degrees C, showing little variation in many districts. Night-time temperatures dropped to a low of 8.4 degrees C in Forbesganj in Araria district with minimum temperatures ranging between 8.4 and 13.5 degrees C across the state. However, south-western and south-central parts of Bihar witnessed a marginal rise of 1-3 degrees C in minimum temperatures. Visibility remained poor, with the lowest visibility of 600 metres recorded in Purnia.In Patna, the maximum temperature was recorded at 14.7 degrees C, which was 7.6 notches below normal, while the minimum temperature settled at 12.6 degrees C. Overcast skies and moderate fog were observed at several locations across the city. As many as six districts in Bihar recorded minimum temperatures of 10 degrees C or below.