Mercury dips in Kashmir; Srinagar-Jammu Highway remains shut

Srinagar, January 17

Night temperature across Kashmir division went down with most places in the Valley receiving fresh snowfall overnight, while the Srinagar-Jammu national highway remained closed for vehicular traffic for the second consecutive day on Tuesday.

"Srinagar-Jammu national highway is still closed and no fresh traffic has been allowed today," an official of the Traffic Department told PTI.

He said efforts were on to clear the highway of snow and only stranded vehicles would be allowed to move later in the day.

The nearly 300-km highway — the only all-weather road-link connecting Kashmir with the rest of the country — was closed for traffic yesterday in the wake of heavy snowfall in the Valley.

The snowfall continued at most places in the Valley during the night as well, but the weather since this morning has remained dry.

Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, recorded 0.5 mm of fresh snowfall during the night, an official of the Meteorological Department here said.

He said the city witnessed a drop of a degree in the night temperature which settled at the minimum of minus 1.9 degrees Celsius, compared to the previous night's minus 0.9 degree Celsius.

He said the famous ski-resort of Gulmarg recorded 1.2 mm of snow and the mercury there settled at a low of minus 10.2 degrees Celsius, against minus 8.0 yesterday.

The official said the resort town was the coldest places in the Valley.

He said the famous health resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir, which serves as a base camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra, received 5.2 mm of snow and the mercury registered a low of minus 12 degrees Celsius, a drop of nearly nine degrees from the previous night.

Qazigund recorded 5 mm of snow and registered a low of minus 3.4 degrees Celsius, while Kokernag witnessed 2.4 mm of snow and the mercury there settled at minus 2.9 degrees Celsius, the official said.

He said Kupwara recorded 8 mm of snow and also registered a low of minus 2.9 degrees Celsius.

Leh in the frontier region of Ladakh was the coldest recorded place in the state with a low of minus 13.7 degrees Celsius – over three degrees down from the previous night's minus 10.1 degrees Celsius.

The mercury in the nearby Kargil town registered a decrease of six degrees from the previous night's minus 4.8 degrees Celsius to settle at a low of minus 10.8 degrees Celsius, the official said.

The MET Office has forecast scattered to fairly widespread snowfall or rain over two days from today. — PTI