Fog, chilly weather grip twin cities, drop mercury further down.

ISLAMABAD -- The last week of December usually known for a spell of winter rain, has been witnessing extreme dry and cold weather conditions this time around with fog and chilled wind overwhelming the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi particularly at night and early morning.

Strong icy wind continue invading the twin cities on Saturday and then fog dropping down rapidly at night further add to the woes of masses already in discomfort due to low gas pressure.

Most of the people have confined themselves to homes, despite the fact that there are winter vacations now a days, in a bid to last this spell of frenzy weather and keep the children safe from infectious diseases.

Moreover, driving at night and early morning has also become a dicey task for commuters and motorists with traffic police already advising to avoid unnecessary travel during fog. 'It is too cold out there as the sun is only managing to show its face not before afternoon.

Gas pressure has further dipped and now only warm clothes are being used to prevent children from cold,' said Humna Bakir, a house wife. 'I am not allowing children to go out for playing rather keeping them busy in indoor activities in order to avoid them falling prey to these cold weather conditions,' she added.

The strange thing happened this season has been that fog has gripped the Pothohar region, in contrast to the trend of nearly-blinding fog affecting the plain areas of Punjab and KP only. 'Normally the phenomenon of fog continues in the plains of Punjab and KP for almost the whole of January, but fog in Pothohar region is something unusual,' said a Met department official.

Flight...