SRINAGAR: Kashmir remains in the grip of a severe cold wave as minimum temperatures across the region plummeted several degrees below freezing point, officials reported on Monday.
Srinagar city, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, recorded a minimum temperature of minus 5.3°C, remaining unchanged from the previous night. Gulmarg, the popular skiing destination, saw a low of minus 4°C, slightly lower than the previous night.
Pahalgam, which serves as the base camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra, experienced a marginal dip as the mercury settled at minus 6.8°C compared to the previous night’s minus 4.8°C.
Konibal, a hamlet on the outskirts of Pampore, emerged as the coldest location in the Valley, recording a bone-chilling minus 6°C. Qazigund, known as the gateway to Kashmir, registered minus 4°C, while Kupwara in north Kashmir recorded minus 4.2°C. Kokernag in south Kashmir reported a low of minus 3.9°C.
According to weather experts the cold wave is likely to persist over the next three days, with temperatures expected to fall further. Light snowfall has been predicted in the higher reaches of the Valley on the night of December 21-22. The weather is otherwise expected to remain predominantly dry until December 26.
The minimum temperatures in various parts of the Kashmir Valley reflected the intensity of the cold. Srinagar’s temperature dipped to minus 5.3°C, while Pahalgam recorded minus 6.8°C. The picturesque Sonamarg witnessed a frigid minus 7.7°C, and Anantnag and Shopian were among the coldest places, recording minus 8.9°C each.
In Jammu, while the cold was not as intense as in the Valley, temperatures remained low in some areas. The city of Jammu recorded a minimum of 4.9°C, while Banihal registered minus 3.4°C and Udhampur minus 0.5°C. Padder in Kishtwar district reported an icy minus 8.3°C.
Meanwhile, in the Union Territory of Ladakh, the chill was even more severe. Leh recorded a low of minus 8.8°C, while Kargil registered a bone-numbing minus 12.5°C. Zojila Pass, a critical link between Kashmir and Ladakh, was particularly harsh as temperatures plummeted to minus 23°C.
