Fresh snowfall in Kashmir; mercury below freezing point

The night temperature across Kashmir once again fell below the freezing point, even as a few places in the higher reaches received fresh snowfall, a MeT official said today.

The mercury across the Valley and Ladakh region settled below the freezing point last night even as Pahalgam and a few other places in the higher reaches of the division witnessed fresh snowfall, a MeT official here said.

Pahalgam recorded fresh snowfall of one centimetre in the last 24 hours, while there were reports of snow in a few other places in the higher reaches of Kashmir.

The resort in south Kashmir, which serves as a base for the Amarnath Yatra, registered the minimum temperature of minus 5.4 degrees Celsius, over five notches down from minus 0.2 degrees Celsius yesterday, he said.

Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, registered the minimum temperature of minus 1.2 degrees Celsius, down from the previous night's 0.4 degree Celsius.

Qazigund, the gateway town to the Valley, recorded a low of minus 2.2 degrees Celsius, compared to 1.2 degrees Celsius yesterday, the official said.

The mercury in Kokernag town in south Kashmir, settled at a low of minus 1.1 degrees Celsius, while north Kashmir's Kupwara town recorded a low of minus 2.8 degrees Celsius.

Gulmarg, the famous ski-resort in north Kashmir, recorded a low of minus 9.0 degrees Celsius, a decrease of two degrees from the previous night's minus 7.0 degrees Celsius, he said.

Leh town in Ladakh region shivered at a low of minus 11.9 degrees Celsius, down over two degrees from minus 9.7 degrees Celsius yesterday. Leh was the coldest recorded place in the state, he said.

The data for the nearby Kargil town was not available, the official said, adding that the weather is likely to stay dry till February 15.