Slight respite from cold conditions in Kashmir, MeT predicts snowfall on Monday
Srinagar-Jammu national highway partially restored
Srinagar: There was some respite from intense cold in Kashmir as minimum temperatures rose at most places in the valley night but stayed well below the freezing point, officials said on Sunday.
The night temperature in Srinagar settled at a low of minus 1.6 degrees Celsius while Gulmarg in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district was the coldest recorded place in Jammu and Kashmir at a low of minus 10.2 degrees Celsius, up from minus 12 degrees Celsius recorded a night earlier, they said.
The Pahalgam tourist resort in south Kashmir, which also serves as one of the base camps for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a low of minus 6.2 degrees Celsius against minus 7.6 degrees Celsius a night earlier, the officials said.
The minimum temperature in Qazigund, the gateway town of the Valley, settled at minus 3.1 degrees Celsius, while Kokernag recorded a low of minus 5 degrees Celsius and Kupwara minus 3.5 degrees Celsius, they added.
Kashmir received season’s first major snowfall on Friday last and another western disturbance is likely to impact Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, under the influence of which, light to moderate rain or snow is likely at most places.
There is a possibility of heavy spells with thunder/gusty winds at a few places, from Monday night to Tuesday forenoon, the officials said.
Afterwards till February 3, the weather is likely to stay mainly dry, but partly cloudy.
The Kashmir Valley is currently under the influence of ‘Chilla-i-Kalan’, a 40-day period of extreme cold during which night temperatures often drop several degrees below the freezing point, and the chances of snowfall are the highest.
‘Chilla-i-Kalan’, which began on December 21 last year, ends on January 30.
Meanwhile, the Srinagar-Jammu national highway was restored partially on Sunday after remaining closed for more than two days due to heavy snowfall.
Parts of Kashmir, including Srinagar, received fresh snowfall this morning, hampering snow clearance operations on the highway.
“The Jammu-Srinagar National highway has been partially restored. Stranded vehicles between Nashri and NAVYUG tunnels are being cleared first,” an official of the traffic police said.
Hundreds of vehicles were stranded on the 270-km highway since Friday when heavy snowfall forced closure of the road.
Srinagar city also received light snowfall in the early hours of the day.
However, flight operations to and from Srinagar international airport have not been affected by inclement weather as three flights have already arrived.
“The flight operations at Srinagar airport are going on normally,” an official of the Airport Authority of India said here.
Train services have also been operating as per schedule, the officials said.
