Kashmir reels under intense cold conditions; Srinagar experiences coldest night

Srinagar: Srinagar experienced the coldest night of the season so far as Kashmir reeled under intense cold conditions with the minimum temperature plummeting several degrees below the freezing point, officials said here on Thursday.

A thin layer of fog was also witnessed in many parts of Srinagar city which recorded a minimum temperature of minus 6 degrees Celsius, down from minus 4.5 degrees Celsius the previous night, the officials said.

Wednesday night was the coldest of the season so far in the city, and the night temperature was 4 degrees below the normal for this part of the season.

They said the intense cold conditions led to the freezing of the fringes of several water bodies, including the famous Dal Lake here, while water supply lines in many areas of the city here and elsewhere in the valley were also frozen due to the biting cold.

The long dry spell in the city and other areas in the plains has resulted in the increase in ailments like cough and common cold.

Tourist resort Pahalgam in south Kashmir, which also serves as one of the base camps for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a low of minus 6.8 degrees Celsius, a degree down from the previous night.

The famous ski-resort of Gulmarg recorded a low of minus 5 degrees Celsius. Konibal, a hamlet on the outskirts of Pampore town, was the coldest weather station in the valley as the minimum settled at the low of minus 8.4 degrees Celsius.

The minimum temperature in Qazigund -- the gateway to Kashmir -- was minus 7 degrees Celsius, Kupwara in north Kashmir minus 6.2 degrees, and Kokernag in south Kashmir minus 5.3 degrees.

The Met office has forecast mainly dry weather till December 26 with a possibility of light snowfall in higher reaches of the valley on the night of December 21-22.

It said light snow over few higher reaches is also possible from December 27 night to the morning of December 28.

However, the minimum temperature is forecast to fall further in the valley and there will be a cold wave at isolated to scattered places during the next few days, it said.