Cold wave grips North India; 3 die, 40 hurt in UP accidents

New Delhi, December 20

Biting cold gripped North India on Tuesday while dense fog caused several accidents, leaving three persons dead and 40 injured in Uttar Pradesh.

Noida eway speed limit capped at 75 kmph

• The upper speed limit on the Noida-Greater Noida expressway has now been reduced from 100 kmph to 75 kmph
• The upper speed of vehicles has also been capped at 65 km per hour on some other routes in Noida
• Motorists violating the speed limit order will face legal action or penalty or both, according to an official statement

Dense to very dense fog engulfed North India, including Chandigarh, Punjab and Delhi, for the second day in a row, affecting rail, air, and road traffic movement. Bathinda and Amritsar reported zero visibility at 0000 hours, according to the IMD.

Around 5.30 am, Bathinda continued to report zero visibility, while visibility in Amritsar improved to 25 m.

Visibility between 0 and 50 m is classified as “very dense fog”, between 51 m and 200 m as “dense”, and 201 m and 500 m as “moderate”.

Satellite images showed a thick layer of fog over Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, north Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh in the morning.

The IMD said dense to very dense fog conditions would continue in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and UP over the next two days. Visibility is expected to improve around December 22 night or December 23 morning.

A man died and 24 were injured when a bus collided with a truck amid low visibility due to dense fog on the Yamuna expressway in Greater Noida, the police have said.

In Bulandshahr, a truck driver was killed and six persons were injured in a pile-up involving several vehicles on the Bulandshahr-Aligarh road in Arnia.

In Kaushambi, a 25-year-old man was travelling with his friend on a motorcycle when their two-wheeler hit a stationary truck near Sayara overbridge on the Prayagraj-Kanpur road around 9 am due to low visibility. The 25-year-old man died in the accident, while his friend was admitted to hospital in a critical condition. (PTI inputs)