Four more people fell victim to chilly temperatures in Uttar Pradesh, taking to 52 the number of cold-related deaths in the populous northern state since early December, officials said from the provincial capital, Lucknow.

Eleven deaths were also reported in adjoining Bihar state, while two deaths occurred in Haryana and West Bengal states in the same period, according to officials.

Indian Kashmir's Leh district, meanwhile, reported growing food and fuel shortages after night temperatures plummeted to a below normal minus 30 degrees Centigrade (minus 22 degrees Fahrenheit), the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.

Daytime temperatures offered little respite, with the mercury rising to just minus 15 degrees Centigrade (five degrees Fahrenheit) in the Himalayan tourist district, it said.

"The intense cold has turned Leh into a ghost town, with streets and markets deserted, especially in the evening," the news agency said from Leh, reporting residents' complaints of frozen taps and rocketing prices of essential goods such as cooking gas.

"Milk, vegetables and fresh eggs have also vanished from the markets," PTI said, adding there were thin attendances at offices in Leh, which lies at an altitude of 15,000 feet (4,545 metres).

However, no deaths were reported in Leh.

The low temperatures across northern India have brought misery to millions of homeless people across four affected states, officials said.

Each winter, scores of homeless people in India die from cold as a result of a lack of proper shelter, clothing and food.

Nearly 200 people froze to death in northern India last winter.

The weather office said temperatures would stay chilly in the region for the next few days.

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