Kargil coldest at minus 17; dry weather in JK in coming days

SRINAGAR: Kargil in frontier region of Ladakh continued to be the coldest recorded place in Jammu and Kashmir even though the minimum temperature there appreciated by over a degree today with the MET Department predicting dry weather in the state in the coming days.

The weather would remain dry in the state over the next 24 hours and there would not be any large change in it for the four days ahead, a spokesperson of the MET department said.

He said the night temperature in Kargil improved from the previous night's minus 18.4 degrees Celsius to settle at a low of minus 17.0 degrees Celsius.

He said Kargil continued to be the coldest recorded place in the state.

The nearby town of Leh recorded a low of minus 13.6 degrees Celsius compared to minus 13.7 degrees Celsius the previous night.

The minimum temperature recorded in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, was minus 1.0 degree Celsius - same as the previous night, he said.

Pahalgam hill resort in south, which serves as the base camp for the annual Amarnath yatra, was the coldest recorded place in Kashmir with a minimum of minus 8.8 degrees Celsius, as against the previous night's minus 9.0 degrees Celsius.

The north Kashmir's famous ski resort of Gulmarg, the star attraction for tourists especially skiers from abroad, marked an improvement in the night temperature which settled at minus 5.6 degrees Celsius compared to minus 7.2 degrees Celsius the previous night, he said.

The mercury in Qazigund on Srinagar-Jammu national highway settled at a low of minus 1.0 degree Celsius, slightly up from minus 1.8 degrees Celsius yesterday.

Kupwara, in north Kashmir, recorded a low of minus 3.5 degrees Celsius, almost similar to the previous night's minus 3.4 degrees Celsius, the spokesperson said.

He said the mercury in Kokernag resort, in south Kashmir, settled at a low of minus 0.6 degree Celsius - same as the previous night.