Winter grips north, Srinagar records season's coldest night

NEW DELHI: Night temperatures dipped in most parts of north India today with Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir recording the season's coldest night at minus 0.5 degrees Celsius.

In the national capital, it was a cold morning with shallow fog in the air. The minimum temperature dipped to 8.5 degrees Celsius, which was four notches below normal for this part of the season.

According to the MeT department, the maximum in the capital settled at 28.1 degrees Celsius.

In Jammu and Kashmir, night temperatures further dropped across the state with Srinagar recording the season's coldest night so far.

Srinagar recorded the coldest night of the season so far with a low of minus 0.5 degrees Celsius as against minus 0.3 degrees Celsius last night, MeT officials said.

"There is a possibility of light snowfall in the higher reaches of the Valley tomorrow, but the weather would remain mainly dry in the plains," said Sonam Lotus, Director of the Srinagar MeT office.

He said the minimum temperature in Kupwara district, in north Kashmir, also dipped slightly to settle at minus 1.3 degrees Celsius as compared to minus 1.2 degrees Celsius the previous night.

The MeT official said Gulmarg, the famous ski resort and the main attraction for tourists visiting the Valley during winter, recorded a low of 0.5 degrees Celsius, slightly warmer as against the previous night's minus 0.2 degrees Celsius.

The minimum temperature in Pahalgam, hill resort in south Kashmir, rose over five degrees from minus 8.6 degrees Celsius to settle at minus 3.2 degrees Celsius, the official said.

He said Qazigund, the gateway town on Srinagar-Jammu national highway, recorded a low of minus 1.4 degrees Celsius same as the previous night.

There was a slight increase in the night temperature in Kokernag, in south Kashmir, where the minimum settled at 0.8 degrees Celsius as compared to the last night's zero degree.

Kargil was the coldest recorded place in the state as it registered a minimum of minus 9.8 degrees as against the previous night's minus 7.2 degrees, while night temperature in Leh settled at a low of minus 9.2 degrees Celsius.