 Early Times Report
Srinagar, Jan 10: After witnessing fresh snowfall on Saturday, the chilly weather conditions intensified on Sunday in the summer capital, Srinagar and other parts of Kashmir due to overcast conditions though the night temperature improved and settled above normal.
A Met department spokesperson said that weather will remain dry during the next about five days.
“The dry weather will result in considerable dip in the night temperature though the maximum temperature is expected to improve due to sunshine,” he said.
He said a fresh Western Disturbance (WD), which will originate in Arabian Sea and would approach the region though Afghanistan and Pakistan, would hit the region on January 15. “It would be a weak current and would result in light snowfall at some places in the valley,” he added.
After witnessing an improvement of about 2 degree in the night temperature, people woke up to a chilly Sunday morning in Srinagar due to overcast conditions, coupled with ice cold winds.
The weather remained chilly throughout the day in the city, where waterbodies, including world famous Dal Lake was partly frozen. Against minus 4 degree recorded on Saturday, the night temperature in Srinagar was minus 2.6 degree, which is about a degree above normal. Mechanics and drivers would be seen early in the morning burning wood on roadsides to keep themselves warm in Srinagar, where interior roads and by-lanes remained under show which has now frozen due to sub-zero temperature.
Vehicles remained parked in the interior parts of the city because the roads remained under snow. People were finding it difficult to move on the slippery roads, particularly in the morning. All mainstream political parties, including Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) have criticized the administration for failing to clear the snow on the roads.
Despite improvement of over 2 degree from Saturday, world famous ski resort of Gulmarg was still the coldest place in the valley at minus 7.8 degree, which is the normal temperature of the area during this time of the year. The tourist footfall in Gulmarg, which is known for its ski slopes and quality of snow, has witnessed increase by many folds since Christmas following early snowfall. “Despite chilly weather conditions, the tourists are out on ski slopes enjoying different snow related activities,” a hotelier from Gulmarg told UNI over the phone.
World famous health resort of Pahalgam, about 100 km from here in south Kashmir, was the only place in the valley where the mercury dipped through it settled a degree above normal. Against minus 5.1 degree recorded on Saturday, the night temperature at the resort was minus 5.9 degree.
The mercury at Qazigund, gateway to the valley, Kupwara in north Kashmir and tourist resort of kukernag improved and settled at minus 0.4 degree, minus 1.5 degree]
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