Chandigarh, Dec 26 (IANS) A cold wave continued to sweep most parts of Punjab and Haryana Sunday, with the mercury below average by two to five notches in various cities.

‘A cold wave is sweeping this region, especially during mornings and late evenings, for the last couple of days,’ a Met official here said.

‘Mercury has plunged below average in most parts of the two states. Road traffic has been adversely affected. There were also complaints of power failure due to dense fog,’ he added.

According to Met officials, Haryana’s Narnaul city was the coldest in the region. It shivered at a minimum temperature of one degree Celsius, which was five notches below average.

Ambala recorded a minimum temperature of 2.3 degrees – five notches below average – and Hisar registered 4.6 degrees, which was one degree below average. The two cities recorded maximum temperatures of 18.1 and 15.5 degrees respectively.

The union territory of Chandigarh recorded a minimum temperature of 5.4 degrees – one degree below average. The maximum temperature in the Punjab and Haryana joint capital was 19.7 degrees, also one degree below average.

In Punjab, Amritsar registered a minimum temperature of 4.1 degrees and maximum of 19.3 degrees. Ludhiana recorded a minimum of 4.6 degrees and maximum of 19.4 degrees.