Kashmir continues to shiver amid dry weather

Kashmir Valley continued to experience dry and cold weather on the second day of ‘Chillai-Kalan’ – the 40-day harshest winter period, as the minimum temperatures remained below the freezing point with slight respite from cold conditions at some places.
Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, recorded a low of minus 1.3 degree Celsius, slightly up from the previous night’s minus 1.8 degrees Celsius, a MeT official said today.
The night temperature in the city has shown an upward trend for the last two days and is getting closer to the freezing point, increasing the chances of snowfall in the region which has seen dry weather so far, he said.
The famous hill resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir, which serves as a base camp during the annual Amarnath yatra, registered a low of minus 3.6 degrees Celsius, down by over a degree from minus 2.4 degrees Celsius the previous night.
Gulmarg, the famous ski-resort in north Kashmir and the star attraction for tourists visiting the Valley during winter, recorded the same minimum of minus 2.8 degrees Celsius as the previous night.
The minimum temperature in Qazigund, the gateway town to Kashmir on Srinagar-Jammu National Highway, settled at minus 2.6 degrees Celsius.
The mercury also appreciated slightly in Kokernag hill resort in south Kashmir to record a low of minus 1.4 degrees Celsius.
North Kashmir’s Kupwara town, 90 kms from here, recorded a low of minus 2.9 degrees Celsius, over one degree up from the previous night’s minus 4.3 degrees Celsius.
The minimum temperature in Leh was recorded at minus 8.8 degrees Celsius, over two degrees down from the previous night’s minus 6.0 degrees Celsius, he said.
Kargil, also in Ladakh region, registered a slight increase in the night temperature from the previous night’s minimum of minus 9.6 degrees Celsius to settle at a low of minus 9.2 degrees Celsius.
The MeT office has predicted light to moderate rains or snowfall at many places over the state in the next 24 hours.
‘Chillai-Kalan’, which begins with Winter Solstice on December 21, is the period when the chances of snowfall are maximum and most frequent.
The weather remains cold during this period as the day temperature also dips drastically, freezing most of the water bodies, including the famous Dal Lake in Srinagar.
This year, the cold wave in the Valley began earlier than the normal period of ‘Chillai-Kalan’, with the minimum in Srinagar plummeting to over four degrees below the freezing point on December 11.
Though ‘Chillai-Kalan’ would end on January 31, the winter continues after that. The 40-day harshest period would be followed by a 20-day long ‘Chillai Khurd’ (small cold) and a 10-day long ‘Chillai Bachha’ (baby cold).