Srinagar: As 24 days of Chillai-Kalan (the harshest-winter-period) passed on Thursday, Kashmir valley hasn't received any major snowfall; light snowfall was reported across the upper reaches including Gurez, Gulmarg, Sonamarg, Machil, Karnah, Tangdhar on Wednesday night and light rains lashed Srinagar plains and other areas.
Though the metrological department predicted heavy to moderate snowfall from 11 January, the upper reaches recorded light to scanty snowfall.
A meteorological department official informed that 19 cm of snowfall was recorded in north Kashmir’s Gulmarg in the 24 hours and 1 cm at south Kashmir’s Pahalgam.
North Kashmir’s Kupwara recorded 11.3mm of rainfall, followed by South Kashmir’s Qazigund with 9.8mm and Kokernag with 7mm. Srinagar received 2.8mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours.
Pir Panjal’s Banihal logged 24.5mm of rainfall followed by Chenab’s Bhaderwah with 15.2mm.
Katra recorded 1.8mm and Jammu had 1.8mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours.
Meanwhile, he said, Srinagar recorded a low of minus 0.2°C against last night’s 3.5°C. Today’s minimum temperature was 1.9°C above normal for the summer capital, he said.
Qazigund, he said, recorded a low of minus 0.4°C against 1.6°C and it was 2.7°C above normal for the gateway town.
Pahalgam recorded a low of minus 1.7°C against minus 0.3°C on the previous night and it was 5.4°C above normal for the place, he said. The coldest night recorded this season in the famous tourist resort in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district was on January 2 when the mercury plunged to minus 9.6°C.
Kokernag recorded a low of minus 2.8°C against 0.7°C on the previous night, he said. It was 0.8°C above normal for the place.
Gulmarg recorded a low of minus 5.5°C against minus 3.0°C on the previous night, the official said. It was 2.4°C above normal for the world-famous skiing resort in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district that saw its coldest night this season on January 2 when the minimum temperature plummeted to minus 10.0°C, the official said.
In Kupwara, the mercury settled at minus 0.4°C against 1.5°C on the previous night and it was 2.5°C above normal in the north Kashmir area, he said.
Jammu recorded a low of 6.6°C against 8.0°C on the previous night. It was 0.4°C below normal for J&K’s winter capital, he said.
Banihal recorded a low of 2.3°C (above normal by 2.4°C), Batote 1.9°C (above normal by 0.3°C), Katra 9.1°C (3.2°C above normal), and Bhadarwah 1.0°C (2.1°C above normal).
In Ladakh, Leh and Kargil recorded a low of minus 9.6°C and minus 11.6°C respectively, the official said.
The MeT office foretold light rain/snow over Jammu and Kashmir in the next 24 hours and dry main weather from January 14.
Chillai-Kalan is the 40-day long harshest winter period in the Himalayan region of Kashmir that starts on December 21, followed by a 20-day-long period called ‘Chillai-Khurd’ (mild cold) between January 30-February 19, and a 10-day-long period ‘Chillai-Bachha’ (baby cold) from February 20 to March 1.
(GNS)