STATE TIMES NEWS
Srinagar: The minimum temperature in several parts of Kashmir was recorded several degrees below the freezing point amid a cold wave in the region, officials said on Tuesday.
Srinagar city recorded a low of minus 4.6 degrees Celsius on Monday night, down from the previous night’s minus 4.3 degrees Celsius, they said.
In Qazigund, it was minus 4.4 degrees Celsius while the ski resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir recorded minus 3.1 degrees Celsius.
Pahalgam in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district, which serves as one of the base camps for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a minimum temperature of minus 5.4 degrees Celsius, the officials said. The minimum temperature in Kokernag town settled at minus 2.3 degrees Celsius and in Kupwara at minus 4.4 degrees Celsius.
The officials said a dry and largely snowless winter in Kashmir has resulted in freezing nights and warmer than usual days. In Srinagar, day temperatures were over eight degrees above the normal temperature for this time of the year, they said.
Kashmir is currently in the grip of “Chilla-i-Kalan”, a 40-day harsh winter period, when a cold wave sweeps the region and temperatures drop considerably leading to freezing of water bodies and water in pipes.
The chances of snowfall are the highest during this period and most areas, particularly the higher reaches, receive heavy snowfall.
