STATE TIMES NEWS
Srinagar: The minimum temperature at most places in Kashmir division, including Ladakh region, went down after showing an upward trend for the last three days, even as the Meteorological Department here predicted fairly widespread wet weather spell over few days from Friday.
Mercury in Srinagar decreased by over two degrees Celsius from the previous night’s 2.2 degrees Celsius to settle below the freezing point at a low of minus 0.4 degrees Celsius, a MeT official said.
The night temperature in the hill resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir, which serves as a Base Camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra, went down two notches to record a low of minus 5.3 degrees Celsius, the official said.
The minimum temperature also dropped in the famous ski-resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir, the star attraction for tourists visiting the Valley during winter, as it settled at minus 6 degrees Celsius from the previous night’s minus 5.4 degrees Celsius.
The mercury registered a decrease of four notches in Kupwara town of north Kashmir and settled at a low of minus 2.4 degrees Celsius, the official said.
The night temperature in Qazigund, the gateway town to Kashmir Valley and Kokernag, also in the south, went up to settle at 1.1 degrees Celsius and 0.1 degrees Celsius respectively, the official said.
The night temperature in Leh settled at a low of minus 12.7 degrees Celsius, a drop of over four degrees from the previous night’s low of minus 8.3 degrees Celsius, he said.
The nearby Kargil town recorded a low of minus 11.6 degrees Celsius, the official said.
The MeT Department has said there is possibility of fairly widespread rains or snowfall over two days from tomorrow.
Kashmir is currently under the grip of ‘Chillai-Kalan’ the 40-day harshest winter period which began on 21st December and ends on 31st January. This is the period when the chances of snowfall are usually most frequent.