Wednesday 13th May, 2026
Sun greets people after 2 days of rain, snow in Kashmir
Srinagar, Feb 1: (UNI) After witnessing rain and snow during the last two days, there was some respite from chilly weather conditions as bright sunshine greeted people though ice cold winds continued in Kashmir valley, where another spell of wet weather is predicted from Monday onwards.
Meanwhile, the night temperature remained due to overcast conditions above normal across Kashmir valley.
A Met department spokesperson told UNI that scattered light rain and snow would occur during the next 24 hours in Kashmir valley under the influence of a Western Disturbance (WD), which is active in the region. “Only very light snow and rain would occur at isolated place in the valley for the next 48 hours from Saturday,” he said.
He said another WD, which originated from the Arabian Sea and is approaching the region though Afghanistan and Pakistan, will hit the region on Monday, which would result in more rain and snow in the valley.
The border town of Kargil was the coldest place in the region at minus 16.8 degree. But, the night temperature in Leh improved about 3 degree from Thursday and settled at minus 6 degree.
He said skies will be generally cloudy during the next 24 hours in Leh, where the maximum and minimum temperatures will be around minus 1 degree and minus 10 degree, respectively.
Roof and tree tops besides roads and open field were under a white snow carpet as people woke up on Friday morning in the city and outskirts. However, as the day progressed, sun came out from behind the clouds, resulting in major improvement in the day temperature though ice cold winds continued. Due to the sunshine, the snow melted, resulting in waterlogged roads in many areas of the city.
The night temperature in the summer capital dipped slightly though it still remained above normal. Against minus 0.3 degree recorded on Thursday, the night temperature in Srinagar was minus 0.5 degree.
Much to the delight of the tourists, bright sunshine greeted them on Friday morning vat world famous ski resort of Gulmarg, where the night temperature dipped 1.6 degree from Thursday and settled at minus 7.6 degree. Gulmarg, where ski slopes are covered under several feet snow, received about 6 to 8 inches of fresh snow from Wednesday till Thursday night. The ski resort was the only place in the valley where the maximum temperature was 2 degree below freezing point on Thursday.
“Tourist are enjoying various snow related activities, including skiing, on a sunny Friday in Gulmarg,” a hotelier told UNI over the phone.
The night temperature in world famous tourist resort of Pahalgam, about 100 km from here in south Kashmir, dipped about a degree from Thursday and settled at minus 3.6 degree, which is about 3 degree above normal.
The mercury at Qazigund, gateway to the valley, Kupwara in north Kashmir, tourist resort of Kukernag improved and settled at minus 0.2 degree, minus 0.6 degree and minus 2.7 degree, respectively. The night temperatures at these places were several degrees above normal.