Srinagar, Dec 16: The grip of the cold wave in north and central Kashmir has shown a slight reprieve, attributed to cloud cover, although the situation has intensified in south Kashmir. Meteorological Center Srinagar reported subzero temperatures across all weather stations in Kashmir during the intervening night of Friday and Saturday.
The minimum temperature in Srinagar was recorded at minus 1.5 degrees Celsius, indicating a marginal improvement compared to Friday’s -3.5°C. Notably, Srinagar experienced its coldest night of the season on Wednesday, plummeting to -5.4°C. Meanwhile, Shopian in south Kashmir claimed the title of the coldest place in the region, registering a minimum temperature of minus 6.5 degrees Celsius, in contrast to the previous night’s -4.8°C.
Pahalgam, the renowned tourist resort, reported a night temperature of minus 5.1 degrees Celsius. Qazigund, the gateway to Kashmir in South Kashmir, recorded a minimum of minus 3.8°C, while Kokernag in the same region observed a minimum of -3.6°C. Moving to the north, the ski resort of Gulmarg reported -2.8°C, and Kupwara recorded a low of -1.0°C.
As the region approaches the harshest period of winter known as “chillai kalan,” lasting 40 days and set to begin next week, there is a slight alleviation from the cold wave. However, there remains a possibility of light snow over isolated places in higher elevations on Saturday.
An independent weather forecaster highlighted that a weak Western Disturbance is anticipated to impact Jammu and Kashmir between today afternoon and tomorrow morning. “Under its influence, light rain/snow is expected at a few places, particularly over higher reaches. Light snowfall is also anticipated in Gulmarg, Sonamarg, Gurez Valley, and Mughal Road,” the forecaster stated.
