J&K reels under cold wave; Kargil coldest at minus 16 degrees C

SRINAGAR: Cold wave tightened its grip on the Kashmir Valley and Ladakh region as the minimum temperatures decreased further below the freezing point with Kargil as the coldest recorded place in the state.

Kargil, in the frontier Ladakh region, registered a low of minus 16.0 degree Celsius, a decrease of three degrees from minus 13.0 degree Celsius the previous night, a MeT department spokesman said.

Kargil was the coldest recorded place in the state, the spokesman added.

Leh, also in Ladakh region, recorded a minimum of minus 10.9 degree Celsius, down by over three degrees from the previous night's minus 7.5 degree Celsius.

Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, recorded a low of minus 2.5 degree Celsius, a drop of over a degree from the previous night's minus 1.4 degree Celsius, the spokesman said.

He said Qazigund, the gateway town to Kashmir Valley in south, recorded a low of minus 4.4 degree Celsius, same as the previous night.

The mercury in Pahalgam resort in south Kashmir, which serves as a base camp for the annual Amarnath yatra, registered a low of minus 5.6 degree Celsius, a drop of over two degrees from the previous night's minus 3.2 degree Celsius, he said.

The minimum temperature in the famous ski-resort of Gulmarg settled at minus 4.0 degrees, a degree up from the previous night's minus 5.0 degree Celsius, the spokesman said.

The night temperatures in Kupwara, in north Kashmir, settled at a low of minus 3.1 degree Celsius, while in Kokernag, in south, the mercury recorded a minimum of minus 2.6 degree Celsius, the spokesman said.

The MeT office has said the weather would remain mainly dry and cold in the state over the next few days.

Kashmir Valley is currently under the grip of "Chillai- Kalan" -- the 40-day harshest winter period, which began on December 21.

The chances of snowfall are maximum and most frequent during this period and the weather remains cold as the day temperature also dips drastically, freezing most of the water bodies including the famous Dal Lake.

Though "Chillai-Kalan" would end on January 31, the winter continues after that.

The 40-day period would be followed by a 20-day long " Chillai Khurd" (small cold) and a 10-day long "Chillai Bachha" (baby cold).