Kolkata experienced persistent rain and fog on Thursday as people preferred to stay indoors in the winter chill.

Even though the minimum temperature increased to 16.3 degrees Celsius — three degrees higher than the corresponding figure on Wednesday — since the difference between the maximum of 20.3 degrees Celsius and the minimum is small, the atmosphere remained comparatively chillier than other days.

The precipitation chances stand at 23 per cent, with light rain forecast across West Bengal.

“Gradually, chances of rainfall are expected to increase in Howrah, Hooghly and Kolkata. The cloudy sky will partially change by the next day, and moderate fog will continue to occur for the next two days,” said a Regional Meteorological Department official

“In the early morning, around 6.30, the visibility reduced to 800 metres, gradually improving to 1,500-1,600 meters as the day progressed, and by nighttime, the fog will bring it down to below 1,000 metres,” said the official.

Dense fog is not confined to Kolkata as it has also enveloped southern parts of West Bengal, including Hooghly, Jhargram, East and West Midnapore, South and North 24 Parganas, Bardhaman, Birbhum, Bankura, Nadia, East and West Bardhaman, and Purulia.

Purulia is expected to witness a rise in minimum temperatures to 11.1 degrees Celsius, from the 8.1 degrees Celsius recorded on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, in the northern reaches of Darjeeling, nighttime temperatures are anticipated to drop to 2.6 degrees Celsius, down from Wednesday’s minimum of 4 degrees Celsius.

Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, North and South Dinajpur, Kalimpong, Alipurduar, Coochbehar and Malda are expected to witness dense fog and light rain or snowfall.