Kashmir, Ladakh continue to reel under intense cold

Kashmir valley and Ladakh region continue to reel under an intense cold wave as minimum temperatures remained below the freezing point.

An official at MeT Department said that mercury at the famous ski resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir settled at minus 5.6 degrees while south Kashmir's famous hill resort Pahalgam, which serves as one of the base camps during the annual Amarnath yatra, recorded a minimum temperature of 5.2 degrees.

Srinagar recorded a minimum temperature of minus 2.2 degrees Celsius while the mercury in Qazigund town of south Kashmir also called as the gateway to the Valley, settled at minus 1.8 degrees.

Leh in the frontier region of Ladakh was the coldest recorded place in the region with the night temperature dropping to bone-chilling minus 12.9 degrees Celsius.  The minimum temperature in neighbouring Kargil town settled at minus 9.2 degrees Celsius.

The cold wave has intensified over the last few days with sub-zero night temperatures resulting in the freezing of water supply lines in several areas. The minimum temperatures were likely to drop further due to clear night sky as mainly dry weather was expected in the next few days in the region, the Met Office has forecast.

Reports said bad weather condition and poor visibility in the mornings results in slowing down of traffic movement on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway and other roads in Kashmir.