Shimla: Biting cold persisted in most parts of Himachal Pradesh even as the state witnessed a dry and sunny day and day temperatures rose marginally.

 

The high-altitude tribal areas groaned under biting cold wave conditions with minimum temperatures ranging between minus 13 degrees Celsius and minus 20 degrees Celsius.

 

Keylong and Kalpa in tribal Lahaul and Spiti, and Kinnaur registered a low of minus of minus 7.2 degrees Celsius and minus 3.4 degrees Celsius respectively.

 

Bhuntar recorded a low of minus 1.5 degrees Celsius, followed by Sundernagar minus 0.9 degrees Celsius, Palampur 0.5 degrees Celsius, Solan 1 degree Celsius and Una 1.8 degrees Celsius.

 

The mercury rose marginally to 2.4 degrees Celsius in Manali, while Dharamsala, Nahan and Shimla shivered at 4.8 degrees Celsius, 5 degrees Celsius degree and 5.5 degrees Celsius respectively.

 

Day temperatures rose by two to three degrees and Una recorded the highest maximum temperature of 25.8 degrees Celsius, followed by Sundernagar 22.5 degrees Celsius, Solan and Palampur 22.2 degrees Celsius each and Bhuntar 21 25.8 degrees Celsius.

 

The local MeT office has predicted continuation of the dry spell with marginal rise in mercury till January 15.

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Mangaluru (Karnataka) (PTI): A man was arrested for posing as a Lokayukta officer and attempting to extort money via WhatsApp, Ullal police said.

According to a press release from the Commissioner of Police, Mangaluru, Dhananjaya Reddy Thota (31) allegedly called Purushottam, a panchayat officer, posing as a Lokayukta official. He demanded money to "resolve" an alleged corruption case. Suspicious of the caller’s identity, Purushottam alerted authorities, prompting an investigation.

Tracing the call led police to Andhra Pradesh, where Thota was apprehended on Saturday. Preliminary investigations revealed that he had no connection to the Lokayukta and was using the scheme to exploit officials by leveraging fear of legal action.

Ullal police are now probing whether Thota was involved in similar scams elsewhere. The case highlights the need for vigilance against such fraudulent activities targeting government employees.

Thota has been remanded to police custody and further investigations are underway.

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