Winter Chill Grips Ooty as Temperature Plummets to 0°C, Turning Hill Station into a Frosty Haven

Ooty, the popular hill station in Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris district, experienced an unexpected winter spectacle as the mercury plummeted to 0.8°C on Sunday, accompanied by frost that transformed the landscape into a snowy haven. Residents woke up on Monday to find up to an inch of ice coating parked vehicles, causing difficulties in starting cars. Areas like the Government Botanical Garden, BRICS Open Ground, and Boat House bore witness to the impact of frost, turning Ooty into a picturesque scene reminiscent of a mini-Kashmir. The Thalikunda area recorded a bone-chilling 0 degrees Celsius, leading to snowfall-like conditions, disrupting normal life and agricultural activities. Locals in the affected areas were seen lighting fires to combat the extreme cold, highlighting the unexpected challenges posed by the delayed winter spell this year.

The hilly district of Nilgiris, accustomed to frost between November and February, experienced a delayed onset of winter this year, attributed to storms and rain in January. Notably, large expanses of grasslands in the Nilgiris district took on a magical appearance, with white frost resembling dew drops carpeting the green grass. Locals in areas such as Kanthal, Pinker Post, and Thalai Kunta faced disruptions to their daily lives and early morning agricultural routines due to the unusually cold weather. Meteorological officials reported significant temperature fluctuations in recent weeks, with daytime temperatures exceeding 25 degrees Celsius, underscoring the remarkable contrast between daytime warmth and nighttime frostiness in the picturesque hill station.