Cold wave continues to sweep north and east India. National capital witnessing the coldest day of the season yesterday as the maximum temperature dipped to 12.4 degree Celsius, nine degrees below normal. The minimum temperature also dipped to a low of 4.3 deg C. Low temperature coupled with icy winds made life difficult for Delhiites, while blinding fog disrupted rail, road and air services. Delhi government has extended the holidays in city schools till Thursday. Heavy fog across north India also threw train traffic out of gear with 100 trains running late and five of them being rescheduled.In view of the dense fog in many areas of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, train traffic has been disrupted. The Lucknow-Shatabdi has been cancelled from both sides while five trains have been rescheduled including the North East Express and Puri Express.Kanke in the outskirts of Ranchi recorded zero deg C for the first time as Jharkhand reeled under severe cold wave. Ranchi recorded a minimum of 4.8 deg C, while it was 3.8 deg C in Palamu and 4.8 deg C in Jamshedpur.Icy north-westerly winds in Bihar claimed one life in Kishanganj district and sent the mercury to hover between four and five degrees at Saran and Patna districts. Thick fog which engulfed the state resulted in the delay of several flights and trains for several hours.Chapra in Saran recorded a minimum of 4.4 deg C, while it was 5 deg C in Motihari and 5.7 deg C in Patna.Intense cold conditions in Orissa since last two weeks has prompted the state government to order suspension of morning classes in all schools till further order. The chill tightened its grip in the state with Kandhamal and Keonjhar districts witnessing mild snowfall. Phulbani, the headquarters of Kandhamal, recorded a low of 3 deg C, while Darningbadi in the district was at freezing point. Uttar Pradesh continued to battle bitter cold wave with the chill claiming six more lives yesterday. Sultanpur at 1.4 degree Celsius was the coldest in the state. Lucknow recorded a minimum of 3.8 deg C, while it was 4.1 deg C in Varanasi.Piercing cold wave swept Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh with fog in the region throwing normal life out of gear. Freezing cold gripped Narnaul in Haryana, which at 1.5 deg C was the coldest place in the two states.Icy cold winds swept Hisar, which recorded a low of 2.4 deg C, while Bhiwani recorded 4.2 deg C. Ambala registered 4.5 deg C, while Gurgaon braved the chill at 6.5 deg C.The minimum temperature at Chandigarh, which had a hazy sky, settled at 6.4 deg C.In Punjab, Patiala recorded a low of 3 deg C, while it was 4.2 degree in Ludhiana and 4.4 deg C in Amritsar. Thick fog in the region affected vehicular movement and delayed many trains.The 300-km-long Jammu-Srinagar national highway, the only surface link between Kashmir and the rest of the country, was closed for vehicular traffic due to heavy snowfall. Gulmarg at a low of -6 deg C was the coldest in the Kashmir Valley.Chill continued in Rajasthan as cold waves swept the state with mercury in Bikaner dipping below freezing point and recording the lowest temperature at -2 deg C. The tourist town of Mount Abu recorded -1 deg C, while Pilani recorded a low of 0.4 deg C.Severe cold continued in Himachal Pradesh with moderate snowfall in the higher reaches of Kinnaur, Pangi, Lahaul and Spiti and strong velocity icy winds lashing higher hills. The sky remained overcast throughout the day. Solan was the coldest in the lower hills with a minimum temperature of -1.0 deg C. The state capital Shimla reeled under 3.1 deg C.