Lucknow, Nov 6 (IANS): Winter chill has set in most parts of Uttar Pradesh as the night temperatures in the state plummetted to 10 degrees Celsius, five notches below the season's average, Met Office said Wednesday.

The weatherman attributed it to the snowfall in the hills of Uttarakhand.

The maximum temperatures, which hovered around 33 degrees Celsius Nov 1, have come down to 28 degrees Celsius, while the mercury in the night touched 10.4 degrees Celsius from 16.2 a few days back.

Northwest winds are also adding to the chill, Met officials informed while predicting a spell of rains in the region in the coming days.

J.P. Gupta, regional Met director, told IANS that a local disturbance has also contributed to the sudden chill and fog. He added that in the next few days, the wind pattern would change.

The winter cold will however begin steadily from the weekend, he added.

Schools in the state capital have also rescheduled their timings. Schools for children below class 5th are now beginning post 8 a.m., an hour later than their earlier morning schedule.