Respite from cold weather in Kashmir as minimum temperature improves

The minimum temperature at most places in Kashmir has improved, even as the mercury settled above the freezing point in Srinagar, providing some relief to residents from the prevailing cold conditions, officials said on Saturday.

There was an improvement in the night temperature across the valley, except in Kokernag town in the south, they said.

The officials said Srinagar city was the only place where the mercury settled above the freezing point.

The city recorded a low of 0.4 degrees Celsius on Friday night, 1.7 degrees up from minus 1.3 degrees Celsius the previous night, they said.

The officials said Pahalgam, which serves as the base camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a low of minus 1 degree Celsius, up from minus 3.3 degrees Celsius the previous night.

Gulmarg resort in north Kashmir's Baramulla district also recorded a minimum temperature of minus 1 degree Celsius.

At Kupwara in north Kashmir, the mercury settled at a low of minus 0.4 degrees Celsius.

Qazigund, the gateway town to the valley, recorded a low of minus 0.3 degrees Celsius, while in Kokernag, it was minus 0.5 degrees Celsius.

The meteorological department has said the weather will most likely remain dry but cold till the end of this month.

The wintry conditions in the valley set in much ahead of the beginning of extreme harsh weather conditions which usually start around the third week of December.

'Chillai Kalan', the 40-day period of harsh winter in Kashmir, begins on December 21 every year.

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