Cold wave intensify in Kashmir,Srinagar gets some respite

The minimum temperature,which went as low as minus six degrees Celsius at the beginning of Chillai Kalan on December 21,was two degrees above normal for this time of the year.

However,other parts of Kashmir division,which includes Leh and Kargil districts,were freezing under sub-zero temperatures.

The minimum temperature in Leh,which was the coldest place in the state last night,fell by 3.3 degrees C as compared to minus 17.1 degrees Celsius yesterday.

Kargil town recorded a minimum of minus 15.4 degrees Celsius,the official said.

Gulmarg,a skiing resort in north Kashmir,recorded a low of minus 8.5 degrees Celsius.

The famous hill resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir recorded the minimum of minus 3.2 deg C,down 0.7 degrees.

The minimum temperature in Kupwara district in north Kashmir fell by 3.6 degrees and settled at minus 1.9 degrees C compared to yesterday’s 1.7 degrees Celsius.

The night temperature at Qazigund,the gateway town to Kashmir,was minus 2.6 degrees C and the minimum temperature recorded in Kokernag town in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district was minus 1.1 degrees C.

The Kashmir Valley is in the grip of an intense cold wave as it witnesses forty days of harsh winter,locally called ‘Chillai Kalaan’.