Srinagar: The Kashmir valley experiences its coldest night of the season. Dal Lake’s shores became ice-cold. Srinagar recorded the coldest temperature of the season, minus 4.2 degrees Celsius.
However, Drass remained the coldest in the country, with a temperature of minus 19.8 degrees Celsius.
Chillai-Kalan’, the 40-day hard winter period, began with the valley’s minimum temperature plunging to the season’s lowest in Kashmir and Ladakh Valley, with Srinagar recording a year’s low of minus 4.2°C. “The minimum temperature in Srinagar mercury was 2.7°C below average and temperatures settled at minus 4.2°C, which is the lowest of the season,” according to the meteorological bureau.
In the Ladakh valley, temperatures dropped to minus 11.8°C in Leh and minus 12.1°C in Kargil, while Drass remained the coldest point in the country, with a temperature of minus 19.8°C. Chillai-Kalan is considered Kashmir’s hardest winter, lasting 40 days from December 21st to January 31st, and affecting residents throughout the valley.