No respite from biting cold

•    Parts of Dal Lake, water bodies, taps frozen
•    No major change in weather expected

There was no respite from cold in Kashmir as minimum and maximum temperature across the Valley continued to remain below the freezing point for the third consecutive day on Wednesday.

Owing to the intense cold, parts of world famous Dal Lake, other water bodies and taps have frozen and no major changes are expected in the hostile weather conditions.

A weather department official said the minimum temperature in Srinagar was recorded at - 3.3 degrees Celsius. The coldest night in Srinagar was recorded on January 8 when the temperature dropped to minus 5.5 degrees.

He said for the third consecutive day, the maximum temperature in Srinagar continued to remain below freezing point. “The maximum temperature in Srinagar was recorded at -0.6 degrees Celsius today.  It was six degrees below normal. Srinagar had yesterday recorded a maximum temperature of -1.0 degree Celsius,” he said.

He said Gulmarg skiing resort in North Kashmir recorded a low of - 14.8 degrees Celsius. “In Pahalgam resort of south Kashmir, mercury touched a low of - 10.7 degrees Celsius. Qazigund recorded a minimum of - 5.4 degrees Celsius while Kupwara town in North Kashmir recorded a low of - 4.4 degrees Celsius,” he said.

He said mercury in Leh town of Ladakh region has plunged to an extreme - 18.4 degrees Celsius while the minimum temperature in Kargil district was recorded at - 17.4 degrees Celsius.

Due to minus temperature during the day, snow remained frozen on roof tops, trees and both sides of roads.

Owing to intense cold, parts of world famous Dal Lake, other water bodies and taps have remained frozen, resulting in water shortage in many areas.

People were trying to defreeze frozen taps using all methods including burning wood and blue lamps. However, some people complained that their water pipes and taps have frozen completely and they have to fetch water from a distance.

Residents of the Valley have been making extra efforts to keep themselves warm from the extreme weather using more woolens and burning small fires by roadsides to shield from the cold.

The weather official said there will be no major change in the weather. “The weather will remain mainly dry over the state during next two days,” he said.

Kashmir has been witnessing the most harsh part of winter, Chillai-Kalaan, a 40-day period which began on December 21 and lasts throughout January.

Rising Kashmir News

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