- As prolonged dry spell in Kashmir continues, the Anjuman Auqaf Jama Masjid on Friday organised a prayer for its end. A large number of people across the Kashmir valley participated in the prayers
- The Anjuman Auqaf Jama Masjid, overseeing the grand mosque of Kashmir in Srinagar, said the prayers were conducted in various mosques, dargahs and shrines as dry weather has impacted lives of people.
A feeble western disturbance is likely to affect Jammu and Kashmir with a possibility of light snowfall over isolated places in the higher reaches, according to the Meteorological Department. Minimum temperatures in Kashmir rose marginally due to cloud cover.
Another western disturbance is likely to affect J&K on January 17 evening. Under the influence of these western disturbances, generally cloudy weather with light snowfall over isolated places in the higher reaches is expected, the department said.
Mukhtar Ahmad, Director, Meteorology Department, said, “Apart from this, we do not expect any wet weather in Kashmir.” The absence of snowfall is impacting power generation in Jammu and Kashmir and is affecting agricultural production. The prolonged dry spell has led to forest fires across various regions.
While the minimum temperature during the night dropped to minus 6°C, the daytime temperature continued hover around 4 to 5° above normal. However, the weatherman says similar temperature patterns were observed in the winters of 2014 and 2018. “We are witnessing these long dry spells after five to six years usually,” an official said.
The Valley continued to experience sub-zero night temperatures with the mercury settling below the normal for this time of the year.
Qazigund recorded a low of minus 4.2°and Gulmarg recorded a low of minus 3.2°C. Pahalgam in Kashmir’s Anantnag district, which serves as one of the base camps for the Amarnath Yatra, recorded a minimum temperature of minus 5.3°C.
