Mercury Drops After Snowfall, Pahalgam freezes at minus 11.9°C, Gulmarg minus 10°C
Srinagar: After the season’s major snowfall, temperature dropped below freezing point in Kashmir valley and most parts of Jammu division on Monday.A meteorological department said that Srinagar recorded a low of minus 0.4°C against minus 0.7°C on the previous night and it was normal for the summer capital of J&K for this time of the year.Qazigund recorded a minimum of minus 1.4°C against minus 2.2°C on the previous night, he said. The minimum temperature was 0.1°C above normal for the gateway town of Kashmir, the MeT official said.Pahalgam recorded a low of minus 11.9°C against minus 3.5°C on the previous night and it was 5.7°C above normal for the famous resort in south Kashmir.Kokernag, also in south Kashmir, recorded a minimum of minus 3.3°C against minus 3.0°C on the previous night and the temperature was below normal by 1.3°C for the place, the official said.Kupwara town in north Kashmir recorded a low of minus 0.9°C against minus 1.9°C on the previous night and it was 1.1°C above normal there, the official said.Gulmarg, the official said, recorded a low of minus 10.0°C against minus 7.0°C on the previous night and the temperature was above normal by 3.3°C for the world famous skiing resort in north Kashmir.Jammu, he said, recorded a minimum of 5.2°C and it was above normal by 4.3°C for the winter capital of J&K.Banihal recorded a low of minus 3.2°C, Batote minus 0.4°C and Bhaderwah 1.8°C, he said.Regarding the forecast, the MeT official said that dry weather is expected to be dry from February 6-13.As ‘Chillai-Kalan’, the 40-day harsh period of winter ended on January 29, Kashmir is presently in the middle of 20-day-long winter period called ‘Chillai-Khurd’ that ends on February 19 and is followed by a 10-day-long period ‘Chillai-Bachha’ (baby cold) which starts from February 20 to March 1. (GNS)