At 8.1°C, Keshod coldest in Gujarat

Ahmedabad: A day after Amreli shivered at 6°C, Keshod town close to the forested Junagadh district was the coldest place in Gujarat with night temperature of 8.1°C on Thursday night. At 8.6°C, Kandla Airport closely followed Keshod while Naliya, traditionally the coldest place in Gujarat, recorded 9.2°C. Amreli, which saw mercury plummeting around 5.5°C on Wednesday night got a slight reprieve with temperature settling to 9.4°C, still 2.4°C below normal.Dahod emerged as the third coldest place with a night temperature of 9.7°C.Parks and walking tracks saw morning walkers briskly rubbing their palms as cold air clung to early mornings while children struggled to crawl out their blankets to go to schools. Wrapped tightly in woolens Many even found comfort in the steam arising from the kettles at roadside tea kiosks before sipping on the comforting cuppa.Rajkot and Vadodara, which experienced their coldest nights on Wednesday, recorded 11.3°C and 11.8°C respectively, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD) data. During the daytime, sunshine was comforting but chill started settling in by evening at most places. Day temperatures remained normal to slightly below normal across most regions. During the day, temple town Dwarka was the most pleasant with maximum temperatures of 25.4°C while Diamond City Surat was the hottest at 34.8°C.The picturesque coastal town of Diu also experienced a cold night with temperatures dropping to 10.3°C but Daman in south Gujarat was warmer at 15.4°C."The minimum temperatures were above normal in parts of North Gujarat, below normal in Saurashtra-Kutch, and near normal across the rest of the state," the IMD bulletin stated.The forecast stated that easterly to southeasterly winds are blowing over Gujarat, indicating relatively warmer air from the sea which may slightly reduce the night-time cold in the coming days, especially in coastal areas.