Cold wave hits Kashmir, minus 10.4 degrees Celsius recorded in Gulmarg
These conditions could prevail for the next four to five days at isolated places in the country’s northwestern parts, the weather department said.
An intense cold wave swept across Kashmir on Wednesday, with most places in the Valley registering a minimum temperature of below freezing point, PTI reported.
The minimum temperature in Srinagar was minus 2.3 degrees Celsius, down from the previous night’s minus 1.4 degrees Celsius. The popular tourist destination Gulmarg recorded a minimum temperature of minus 10.4 degrees Celsius, one degree less than the previous night’s low of minus 9.4 degrees Celsius, the news agency quoted an official as saying.
The Qazigund town, considered as the gateway to the Kashmir Valley, recorded a low of 0.6 degrees Celsius, up from the previous day’s minimum temperature of minus 0.4 degrees Celsius, Kashmir-based Global News Service reported.
Kashmir is currently in the middle of the 40-day “Chillai Kalan”, a locally used phrase to describe the harshest part of winter. The “Chillai Kalan” began on December 21 and will go on till January 31.
#WATCH Snowfall in the Himalayan region of Munsiyari in Uttarakhand's Pithoragarh district pic.twitter.com/1w6MAyiz3s
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) December 29, 2021
Meanwhile, cold wave conditions were also reported from other parts of north India. Visuals from Uttarakhand’s Pithorgarh district showed snowfall in the town of Munsiyari, reported ANI.
Harsh temperatures were reported in most places in Punjab and parts of Haryana on Wednesday as the minimum temperature hovered below normal, reported PTI. The state’s Moga city recorded a temperature of one degree Celsius.
Similarly, Amritsar, Ferozepur, Bathinda and Faridkot registered minimum temperatures of 2.4 degrees Celsius each. In Punjab, Barnala, Jalandhar, Gurdaspur and Pathankot also recorded temperatures as low as 2.7 degrees Celsius.
The India Meteorological Department on Wednesday predicted cold wave conditions at isolated places in the northwestern parts of the country in the next four to five days. The weather agency has predicted cold wave conditions in parts of Punjab, Haryana, eastern and western Rajasthan in the next two days.
It has also predicted dense fog at isolated pockets in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh in the next two days, and in the eastern parts of the country in the next three days.
Meanwhile, Delhi on Wednesday recorded a minimum temperature of 8.4 degrees Celsius, one degree above normal, according to PTI.