Severe cold wave and foggy conditions continued to prevail in Kashmir valley thereby disrupting flights and normal life of people
Most parts of the Valley including Srinagar again saw fog, reducing visibility and causing inconvenience to commuters. The winter chill in Kashmir Valley is on a continuous surge as temperature continues to dip disrupting life further in the region leading the government to announce winter vacations for all government and private schools
Qazigund recorded a minimum of minus 3.2°C against minus 3.0°C on the previous night, he said. The minimum temperature was 0.9°C below normal for the gateway town of Kashmir, the MeT official said.
Pahalgam recorded a low of minus 4.6°C against minus 4.7°C on the previous night and it was 0.6°C above normal for the famous resort in south Kashmir.
Kokernag, also in south Kashmir, recorded a minimum of minus 2.2°C against minus 2.0°C on the previous night and the temperature was above normal by 0.5°C for the place, the official said.
Kupwara town in north Kashmir recorded a low of minus 44.2°C against minus 3.5°C on the previous night and it was 1.7°C below normal there, the official said.
Gulmarg, the official said, recorded a low of minus 2.8°C against minus 2.6°C on the previous night and the temperature was 3.4°C above normal for the world famous skiing resort in north Kashmir.
Jammu, he said, recorded a minimum of 7.6°C against 7.4°C on previous night, and it was above normal by 0.2°C for the winter capital of J&K.
Banihal recorded a low of 1.2°C, Batote 4.7°C and Bhaderwah 1.8°C, he said.
Kashmir valley is under ‘Chillai-Kalan’, the 40-day harsh period of winter which will end on January 30. However it does not mean an end to the winter. It is followed by a 20-day-long period called ‘Chillai-Khurd’ that occurs between January 30 and February 19 and a 10-day-long period ‘Chillai-Bachha’ (baby cold) which is from February 20 to March 1.
Weatherman has predicted generally cloudy weather with possibility of light snow over isolated higher reaches during 24 hours.
“Generally dry weather with moderate to dense fog over Central Kashmir, Plains of Baramulla, Ganderbal and Pulwama is expected till December 31,” the MeT official said.
He said from January 1-2, weather is expected to be generally cloudy with “light rain” at isolated places.” Generally cloudy weather with light rain/snow at scattered places has been forecast on January 3-4.
The transport department has issued an extensive advisory for motorists in the city driving through what they termed as one of the worst foggy conditions in recent memory.
Srinagar recorded a low of minus 2.6 degrees Celsius on Tuesday night, a slight increase from the previous night’s minus 3.0 degrees Celsius, they said.
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 4.6 degrees Celsius, marginally up from the previous night’s minus 4.7 degrees Celsius, they said. It was the coldest recorded place in the Kashmir Valley.
Gulmarg, a famous ski resort in Baramulla, recorded a low of minus 2.8 degrees Celsius, dropping slightly from previous night’s minus 2.4 degrees Celsius, the officials said.
Qazigund recorded a low of minus 3.2 degrees Celsius, Kokernag town saw the mercury settle at minus 2.2 degrees Celsius and Kupwara recorded a minimum of minus 4.2 degrees Celsius.
The Met department said the weather is likely to remain mainly dry till the end of the month. Foggy conditions are many towns of the Valley, including Srinagar.
The visibility in the city has reduced to less than 50 metres due to the fog cover. There was less than usual traffic on roads in the morning while vehicles were seen moving at low speeds due to the reduced visibility.
“The visibility in Srinagar at 8.30 am was less than 50 metres due to the fog cover. The motorists should drive carefully due to the low visibility,” an official of the local meteorological office said.
Kashmir is currently under the grip of ‘Chilla-i-Kalan’ – the 40-day harshest winter period when a cold wave grips the region and the temperature drops considerably, leading to the freezing of water bodies, including the Dal Lake and the water supply lines, in several parts of the Valley.
The chances of snowfall are the highest during this period and most areas, especially the higher reaches, receive heavy snowfall.
’Chilla-i-Kalan’ will end on January 31. However, the cold conditions will continue after that with a 20-day-long ’Chilla-i-Khurd’ (small cold) and a 10-day-long ’Chilla-i-Bachha’ (baby cold).