The cold wave across North India abated slightly with mercury rising by a few notches on Sunday even as 17 more people died, raising the toll this winter to 425. All the fresh deaths were reported from Uttar Pradesh which alone accounted for 396 of the total casualties so far.<br/><br/> A dense fog engulfed Punjab and Haryana throwing flight and train schedules haywire. Most trains bound for Amritsar, Pathankot and Chandigarh ran several hours behind schedule on account of foggy conditions. A thick blanket of fog descended on the national capital in the wee hours on Sunday, dipping runway visibility to around 125 metres at the IGI airport.<br/><br/>As many as 30 domestic and international flights were disrupted on Sunday morning causing inconvenience to passengers. Rail traffic was also disrupted. <br/><br/>Meanwhile, people of Jammu and Kashmir have some relief from severe cold conditions as the night temperature rose by a few notches in several parts of the state. <br/><br/>In Rajasthan, barring Mount Abu, most places saw mercury rising by two to four degrees, giving a much-needed relief to people who were suffering from icy winds and dense fog for the past two weeks. In Himachal Pradesh, the plains witnessed a rise mercury but high-altitude areas of the state continued to reel under cold conditions.