Srinagar, Jan 1: Mercury dropped to minus 6.4°C in Srinagar, the third lowest temperature this season in the Jammu and Kashmir’s summer capital, the weatherman said on Friday.
Earlier the mercury had dipped to minus 6.4 degrees Celsius in Srinagar on the intervening night of 16 and 17 December. While Srinagar recorded a low of minus 5.9°C on the earlier night, the season’s coldest night was recorded on December 19 when the mercury plunged to minus 6.6°C and was the second time in a decade that temperature dropped to such an extent during the month of December.
Regarding the month of January, a MeT official said minus 6.8°C was recorded on 14 January 2017, minus 7.8°C on 14 January 2012 while all-time record temperature was reached on 31 January 1893 when mercury plummeted to minus 14.4°C.
Gulmarg recorded a low of minus 9.0°C against minus 10.4°C on the previous night, the official. Pahalgam, the famous tourist destination in south Kashmir, recorded a minimum of minus 7.8C against minus 9.6°on the previous night. Qazigund recorded minus 5.7°C against minus 6.2°C on the earlier night, Kupwara recorded minus 5.6°C while Kokernag recorded a low of minus 7.8°C, the official said. Leh recorded a low of minus 17°C while Kargil recorded a minimum of minus 17.4°C, the official added.
Kashmir is in the middle Chillai-Kalan, the 40-day winter period which commenced on December 21 and ends on January 31. The period is considered the harshest of the winter when the chances of snowfall are most frequent and maximum.
The cold wave, however, continues even after that in Kashmir with a 20-day-long ‘Chillai-Khurd’ (small cold) and a 10-day-long ‘Chillai-Bachha’ (baby cold).
The weatherman has forecast mainly dry weather over Jammu and Kashmir for the next week or so, saying there would be no significant change before January 5 when there is a possibility of wide spread snow and rain across the Valley. Due to harsh weather conditions, people are facing a lot of problems. The water supply has been disrupted with frozen taps becoming a common sight now. The frequent power cuts, scheduled or unscheduled, only amplify the cold and add to the discomfort of the people. Some portions of the Dal Lake were also frozen due to the plunge in mercury overnight.
