Bone-chilling cold continued across Kashmir on Friday as dense fog made pedestrian and traffic movement difficult in the morning in J&K’s Srinagar city.

A thick blanket of fog covered Srinagar city and suburban areas as the unabated cold continued.

The Meteorological (MeT) Department statement said, “On January 3, generally cloudy weather with Light Snow at isolated higher reaches is likely. On January 4-6, due to Moderate to Strong Western Disturbance (WD) cloudy with Light to moderate Rain Plains of Jammu and Snow at most places of J&K with peak activity from 4th (Night) to 5th (late Night)/6th morning & improvement from 6th afternoon."

It further said, "On January 7th-10th, Generally cloudy dry weather is expected while on January 11-12, Generally cloudy with Light Snow at isolated places is expected."

A tanker lorry carrying 20 metric tons of Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) overturned on the Avinashi flyover in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore during the early hours of Friday.

The tanker was transporting LPG from the Kochi Bharat Petroleum Plant to a storage facility in Coimbatore when the accident occurred. The driver of the vehicle sustained minor injuries.

The overturning caused a gas leak, which has since been brought under control after several hours of operations.

Officials stated that the leak posed a significant risk to residents in the immediate vicinity. As a precaution, five schools in the neighbourhood were closed to ensure the safety of children, and residents within a one-kilometre radius of the accident site were evacuated.

The Avinashi flyover remains closed, and vehicles were rerouted to alternative routes.

Fresh snowfall occurred in the Kashmir Valley on Thursday as the cold wave continued unabated across J&K.

The Meteorological Department has forecast more rain/snow because of two back-to-back Western Disturbances (WDs) passing over J&K.

A MET department statement said, "Because of a feeble WD, generally cloudy weather with light snowfall at scattered places is likely to occur on January 2. On January 3, generally cloudy weather with light snow is expected at isolated higher reaches of J&K."

"On January 4-6th, due to moderate to strong WD, generally cloudy weather with light to moderate rain in plains of Jammu and snow at most places of J&K with peak activity during January 4th night to 5th late night with improvement from 6th late afternoon," it said.

More than 24 people sustained injuries in a collision between a bus and a truck in Rajasthan's Dausa early on Thursday morning due to poor visibility as a result of a heavy fog in the area, according to the local police.

Among them, several critically injured passengers were rushed to Jaipur for advanced medical treatment.

The Volvo bus, carrying pilgrims from Ujjain to Delhi, was involved in an accident at around 6:00 a.m. near pillar number 198 on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway. Heavy fog is believed to have significantly reduced visibility, leading to the mishap.

Detailing the incident, Deputy SP Charul Gupta said, "An accident occurred at pillar number 198 on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway. Due to heavy fog in the morning, a bus carrying pilgrims from Ujjain to Delhi collided with a truck."

At least four people were killed and eight others injured in separate road accidents in areas surrounding Bengaluru during New Year celebrations, police said on Wednesday.

In one incident, two people died on the spot and six others were injured when the Innova car they were travelling in overturned near Janata Colony on Tavarekere Road, close to Magadi on Bengaluru's outskirts. The victims were returning to Bengaluru after enjoying an early morning coffee at 3 a.m. following New Year celebrations.

The deceased were identified as 31-year-old Manju and 30-year-old Kiran. They were travelling with six friends, all of whom sustained serious injuries and were taken to the hospital. Magadi police are investigating the case, and the cause of the accident is yet to be determined.

In another incident, two young men lost their lives when the car they were travelling in with friends collided with a parked canter vehicle near the Sathanur bus stop in Kanakapura taluk, close to Bengaluru.

In a bizarre incident in Andhra Pradesh's Parvathipuram Manyam district, a drunk youth climbed on an electric pole and lied-down on the wires.

However, a disaster was averted as alert villagers turned off the transformer in time.

The incident occurred in M. Singipuram village in Palakonda Mandal on Tuesday. The video of the youth went viral on social media.

The youth resorted to the act after his mother refused to give him her social security pension money.

His action sent the residents into a tizzy. After switching off the power, they appealed to him to get down. The locals spent some anxious moments as the youth was on the wires for some time. He later got down, much to the relief of everyone.

New Year's celebration turned tragic for the families of three youths killed in a road accident in Shimla.

The accident took place on Tuesday night near the petrol pump near Matiyana, near here, on the National Highway-5. Three youths from Kinnaur were travelling from Shimla to Rampur when their car went out of control and fell into a deep gorge. All three died on the spot in the accident.

Local people reached the spot after hearing the loud cries of the youths and informed the police and administration. However, by the time, the teams reached, all three youths had died.

The deceased have not been fully identified yet. However, the police have found out in the preliminary investigation that these three youths were residents of the Kinnaur district.

The Theog Police Station has registered a first information report (FIR) regarding the accident.

Cold wave tightened its grip on the Kashmir Valley as the Meteorological (MeT) office on Wednesday forecast light snowfall and rain in Jammu and Kashmir during the next 24 hours.

A MeT department statement said, “Two western Disturbances (WD) are passing over J&K in quick succession from 1st January onwards. On 1-2nd Jan (Feeble WD): Generally cloudy with light snow at scattered places during 1st evening/night to 2nd morning. On 3-6th January (Moderate WD): Generally cloudy with light to moderate rain (plains of Jammu/snow at most places of J&K with peak activity on 4th to 6th January (a/n). On 7th-10th January: Generally cloudy with dry weather."

The MeT Department also issued an advisory, saying that in view of fresh snowfall, sub-freezing temperatures and icy conditions over roads (plains/higher reaches), tourists/travellers/transporters are advised to plan accordingly and follow administration and traffic advisory.

The 20 Indian fishermen, who were released from jails in Sri Lanka, reached Chennai by flight, said officials here on Wednesday.

The fishermen were arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy a year ago. They are residents of the Tamil Nadu districts of Pudukkottai, Ramanathapuram, and Tuticorin, and were in Sri Lankan judicial custody.

After negotiations between the Indian and Sri Lankan governments, the latter released the 20 fishermen.

They were handed over to Indian embassy officials, who provided them with temporary citizenship certificates. The fishermen were then flown from Colombo to Chennai airport.

The meteorological department of Patna has issued an alert predicting a cold wave across Bihar for the next seven days, starting with the new year.

The state has already experienced a significant drop in temperature, with Kishanganj recording the lowest minimum temperature at 11.5°Celsius. Other notable recordings include Darbhanga at 11.6°C, Aurangabad at 13.3°C, Muzaffarpur at 13.7°C, and Sasaram at 14.7°C on Tuesday.

Met officials confirmed that the weather will remain dry with no signs of rain until at least January 7. However, temperatures are expected to decline further, intensifying the cold wave conditions.

The Meteorological Centre and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) have also forecast dense fog and westerly winds across the state, contributing to a heightened cold wave alert.