North India experienced biting cold with night-long snowfall in the upper reaches of Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. The toll in the current spell of cold wave rose to 125 with 40 deaths in Uttar Pradesh during the past 24 hours. Eight people also died in Bihar and two in Haryana. AIR Lucknow correspondent reports that all schools from class One to Eight in the state has been closed till 10th of this month.<br/><br/>Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar also ordered closure of schools for three days from Tuesday in view of cold and directed the disaster management department to arrange bonfires.<br/><br/>In other parts of North India, while light showers in parts of Rajasthan led to a further dip in temperature in the desert state, the national capital, which had a clear sky, experienced icy winds blowing from the snowcapped northern mountains though the minimum temperature rose slightly. Morning flights on the Delhi-Srinagar and Jammu-Srinagar sectors could not operate for the second day due to poor visibility at the airport. In the Ladakh region, there was no let up in cold wave as mercury continued to remain sub-zero. Kargil recorded a minimum of minus 16.8 degrees Celsius while Leh recorded minus 13.6 degree Celsius, met office said. Cold wave swept Himachal Pradesh where the higher reaches experienced heavy snowfall. A large number of tourists thronged Kufri, 16 km from Shimla to enjoy the season's first snowfall. In Uttarakhand, rains and snowfall intensified the cold conditions affecting normal life. However, the rains are good for wheat crops. Dehradun recorded a low of 3 degree Celsius. The national capital recorded a minimum temperature of 9.6 degree Celsius, while morning mist reduced visibility to 1,000 metres but there was no disruption in flight operations at the Indira Gandhi airport. The Met office has forecast possibility of mist or shallow fog in the morning tomorrow.<br/><br/>Meanwhile, all government and private schools in Ludhiana in Punjab will remain closed till 8th of January as Cold conditions abated in Punjab and Haryana with minimum temperature rising by up to three notches against normal.