Mercury Plunges Across J&K; Gulmarg Records Minus 10°C, Pahalgam Minus 9.6°C
Temp Drops To Minus 5.4°C In Srinagar, Banihal Coldest In Jammu At Minus 2°C; MeT Forecasts Snowfall On January 8-10
Srinagar, Jan 2 : Amid overnight clear skies, the minimum temperature plummeted across Kashmir Valley with Gulmarg and Pahalgam recording season’s coldest night at minus 10.0°C and 9.6°C respectively on Monday.
A meteorological department official here told GNS that Srinagar recorded a low of minus 5.4°C against last night’s 0.5°C. The temperature was 3.3°C below normal for the summer capital, the official said. Srinagar has so far seen the coldest temperature this season on December 25 when mercury plummeted to minus 5.8°C.
Qazigund recorded a low of minus 5.8°C against 0.3°C on the previous night. The temperature was 2.9°C below normal for the gateway town of Kashmir, he said.
Pahalgam, he said, recorded a low of minus 9.6°C against minus 9.4°C on the previous night. The minimum temperature was 3.0°C below normal and the coldest night recorded this season in the famous tourist resort in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district, he said.
Kokernag recorded a low of minus minus 4.6°C against minus 0.6°C on the previous night, he said. It was 1.1°C below normal for the place, he said.
Gulmarg recorded a low of minus 10.0°C against minus 8.2°C on the previous night, the official said. It was 3.0°C below normal and this season’s coldest for the world famous skiing resort in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, the official said.
In Kupwara town, the mercury settled at minus 5.7°C against minus 4.5°C on the previous night in the north Kashmir area, he said. The official said that the temperature was 3.2°C below normal.
Jammu recorded a low of 4.2°C against 5.7°C on the previous night. It was 3.1°C below normal for J&K’s winter capital, he said.
Banihal recorded a low of minus 2.0°C (below normal by 2.2°C), Batote minus 1.5°C (below normal by 3.5°C), Katra 5.5°C (0.8°C below normal) and Bhadarwah minus 2.4°C (1.9°C below normal).
In Ladakh, Leh and Kargil recorded a low of minus 15.4°C and minus 15.4°C respectively, the official said.
Kashmir is under the grip of Chillai-Kalan, the 40-day long harsh winter period that started on December 21. It does not mean an end to the winter either. 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’ which is from February 20 to March 1.
Regarding the forecast, the MeT official said mainly clear weather was expected till January 6. “Expect further fall in minimum temperature across J&K,” he said, adding, “On January 7, weather is expected to be cloudy and from January 8-10, weather is expected to be cloudy with possibility of snowfall and rain (in plains of Jammu) at many places of J&K (70% chance).”