Intermittent rain lash JK, minimum temp on the rise

Intermittent rainfall lashed wide parts of Jammu and Kashmir as the minimum temperature in the region continued its upward trend today, settling over five degrees above normal during this part of winter.
The minimum temperature in the summer capital of Srinagar was recorded at 6.5 degrees Celsius against the normal 1.0 degrees Celsius during this part of the season. The city recorded 1.4 mm of rainfall during the night, a spokesman of the MeT department told PTI here.
"Widespread rain or snow is expected during the next 48 hours under the influence of western disturbance which hit the region yesterday and will remain active till Monday," the spokesman said.

He said there were no reports of snowfall from any part of the region so far.
Qazigund, the gateway town to Kashmir along Srinagar-Jammu national highway, recorded a low of 3.6 degrees Celsius followed by Kokernag at 3.9 degrees Celsius, the spokesman said.
Kupwara town of north Kashmir recorded a minimum of 3.3 degrees Celsius, while the night temperature recorded at the famous hill resort of Pahalgam in south Kashmir was 1.8 degrees Celsius, he said.

The famous ski resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir was the only recorded place in the valley where the night temperature was below the freezing point at minus 0.8 degrees Celsius, still marking an improvement of 0.2 degrees Celsius compared to the previous night, the MeT said.

Kargil in frontier region of Ladakh was the coldest recorded place in the state with a temperature of -3.0 degrees Celsius against the previous night's -4.8 degrees Celsius.
The nearby Leh town recorded a low of -1.3 degrees Celsius, the spokesman added.