Patiala, Jan. 11 -- Punjab recorded its coldest morning of the season on Saturday as the cold wave tightened its grip on the region, sending temperatures plummeting toward freezing point. Hoshiarpur was the coldest city in the state at 1.1degC, followed closely by Amritsar at 1.3degC, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Dense to very dense fog engulfed Punjab impacting early-morning visibility. Meteorologists warn that several districts will face "cold day" conditions over the weekend, with maximum temperatures likely to stay below 10degC. In some areas, a "cold blast" may keep daytime highs in the single digits. A cold day is declared when the maximum temperature remains 4.5degC to 6.4degC below normal and the minimum is below 10degC. A cold wave is declared when the minimum temperature drops 4.5degC to 6.4degC below normal. "As compared to yesterday, there is a further fall of 0.7degC in the state's average maximum temperature over the past 24 hours. It is appreciably below normal by 3.4 degrees Celsius in the state," reads the IMD's daily bulletin. Bathinda recorded the lowest maximum temperature in the state at 7.5 degrees Celsius, while Amritsar reported a maximum temperature of 8.7 degrees Celsius on Saturday. IMD has warned that cold wave conditions are likely to persist in various districts, including Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Fazilka, Faridkot, Muktsar, Bhatinda, and Mansa, while cold day conditions have been predicted over Amritsar, Kapurthala, and Jalandhar. The IMD expects these conditions to persist for the next few days across most districts of Punjab. "There is no immediate relief in sight, and residents should remain alert and follow advisories until weather improve," it said in a bulletin....