Cold wave intensifies in Valley; Leh coldest

The minimum temperature at most places in Kashmir division, including Ladakh region, went down by several degrees as cold wave returned to Valley after a slight respite, due to snowfall and rain.
Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, recorded a minimum temperature of 0.6 degrees Celsius, over a degree down from the previous night's 1.8 degrees Celsius, a MeT Department spokesperson here said.
The spokesman said the mercury in Leh, in the frontier region of Ladakh, settled at a minimum of minus 11.7 degrees Celsius, a decrease of over five degrees from the previous night's low of minus 6.2 degrees Celsius.

Leh was the coldest recorded place in the state, he said.
The nearby Kargil town registered a decrease of over six degrees in the night temperature as the minimum there settled at minus 11.4 degrees Celsius, compared to minus 5.0 degrees Celsius the previous night, the spokesman said.
The famous ski-resort of Gulmarg, the star attraction for tourists, especially skiers from across the country and abroad, recorded a low of minus 7.8 degrees Celsius, a drop of over three degrees from minus 4.0 degrees Celsius the previous night.

Gulmarg experienced fresh snowfall yesterday, while it recorded 1.2 mm of rainfall during the night, he said.

The famous South Kashmir hill resort of Pahalgam, which also serves as the base camp for the annual Amarnath yatra, recorded 0.2 mm of rains, the spokesperson said, adding the minimum temperature there decreased by nearly eight degrees from zero degrees Celsius the previous night to settle at minus 7.6 degrees Celsius.
He said Qazigund, the gateway town to Kashmir Valley in south, received 7.6 mm of rainfall and the mercury there recorded a low of minus 2.4 degrees Celsius against 0.2 degrees yesterday.