Category: Environment

Environment

At -2.8 degrees, Srinagar records season’s coldest night

Editor

Srinagar recorded the season’s coldest night temperature at minus 2.8 degrees Celsius, while the minimum temperatures across Jammu and Kashmir continued to drop on Monday, the weather office said. “Srinagar witnessed the coldest night of the season due to the clear night sky,” an official of the Met Department said. “The minimum temperatures are likely to drop further in the coming three to four days.” The minimum temperatures in Pahalgam and Gulmarg were minus 5.2 degrees Celsius and minus 4, respectively. Leh town at a minus 10.9 degrees Celsius was…

Read More

Intense cold wave grips Kashmir & Ladakh, Jammu experiences cold mornings, evenings

Editor

Minimum temperatures across the Kashmir Valley remained below freezing point on Thursday as intense cold wave conditions continued in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir, the Met department said. Weather will remain cloudy and dry during the next seven days, it added. Leh at minus 8.1 was the coldest, followed by Kargil at minus 7.4., the Met official said. Srinagar city recorded minus 0.9, while Pahalgam and Gulmarg both recorded minus 3 degrees Celsius. Jammu was at 10.9, Katra 10.4, Batote 5.3, Bannihal 1.7 and Bhaderwah was at 4.2…

Read More

PEC expresses concern over Junaid Mattu’s ‘Insensitive Remarks’ about wetlands

Editor

Peoples’ Environmental Council (PEC), a Srinagar based environmental watchdog, has expressed serious concern over the “insensitive” remarks expressed by the newly elected mayor of Srinagar, Junaid Mattu, about wetlands and has reminded the government of the directions issued by the high court and the new set of rules notified by Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF) vis-à-vis protection of wetlands. In a statement issued on Wednesday PEC said that its members have taken strong note of the “insensitive remarks” made by the incumbent Mayor wherein he has…

Read More

Wetlands across Kashmir valley shrinking at alarming pace

Editor

Wetlands in Kashmir are shrinking at an alarming pace due to unplanned urbanisation, siltation and lack of conservation measures by the state government, experts have said. Wetlands act as flood absorption basins by retaining excess waters and are also referred as the Earth’s kidneys for helping absorb wastes like nitrogen and phosphorous. Citing Kashmir “geomorphic setup”, an expert said in view of its flat topography, the Valley is highly vulnerable to flooding, but most wetlands, which acted as reservoirs of floodwaters, have lost their carrying capacity due to “haphazard urbanisation…

Read More

MeT forecast another spell of Rains and Snow from Nov 12 to 14 across Kashmir Valley

Editor

There is possibility of scattered to fairly widespread rain or snowfall in Kashmir Valley from November 12 to 14, weatherman forecast even as Gulmarg, the world famous skiing resort , on Wednesday recorded its coldest night in six years and this summer capital of the state, recorded season’s coldest night,. A meteorological department official said while Srinagar had minimum of minus 2.2 degrees Celsius, the day temperature settled at 13.4 degrees Celsius. The night temperature plunged to minus 6.6 degree Celsius in Gulmarg , marking it the coldest night in…

Read More

Rain, Snow forecast for next 4 days across valley: MET

Editor

The Meteorological department on Tuesday issued an advisory for Jammu and Kashmir predicting moderate rain or snow over the state between October 31 and November 3, which could lead to temporary closure of highways. The advisory issued by Sonam Lotus, director Meteorological department said a spell of light to moderate rain and snow is likely over higher reaches of the mountainous state from the night of October 31 to November 3, with maximum intensity on November 1 and 2. The MET office said a fresh western disturbance is most likely…

Read More

Gurez, Sonmarg get season’s first snowfall, Chill across Valley

Editor

Several remote areas of the Valley received the season’s first snowfall on Tuesday. The meteorological department has forecast another day of wet spell. The snowfall was received in remote mountainous regions of Kashmir, including in Sonmarg in Ganderbal district and Gurez in Bandipora district. Shahid Choudhary, Bandipora Deputy Commissioner, said the snowfall was received in Gurez, which remains cut-off during winter months. The Deputy Commissioner said the road connecting with Gurez, which is located along the Line of Control in north Kashmir, was open while the departments concerned had kept…

Read More

E Sreedharan, India’s ‘Metro Man’ declines to be part of Dal Lake expert committee

Editor

India’s ‘Metro Man’ E Sreedharan, one of the members of the expert committee formed by the High Court (HC) last month to save the Dal Lake, has expressed his inability to be part of the effort. In a letter to the HC, Sreedharan has cited “illness and old age” as the ground for not being able to be part of the expert committee. To look for the “immediate measures” aimed at the conservation of the dying Dal, a division bench of the HC headed by Chief Justice Gita Mittal had,…

Read More

Kashmir to experience Rains, Snow from today: MeT

Editor

Kashmir is likely to get a spell of light to moderate rains and snow from Monday evening and there will be further drop in temperature. Director Meteorological department Sonam Lotus said a fresh western disturbance will hit Kashmir and Ladakh region. “It will start affecting Jammu and Kashmir from Monday evening. The effect will be there for two-three days,” he said. Western disturbance is an extra-tropical storm which originates in the Mediterranean and brings sudden winter rain and snow to the northwestern parts of the Indian subcontinent, affecting the weather…

Read More

Govt fails to nip in bud ‘Deadly’ lily growth in Dal Lake

Editor

The famed lake at the heart of Kashmir’s holidaying industry is facing an uncertain future as past measures to uproot lily patches have met with little success and the machines required for its accelerated removal have not been purchased so far. The removal of lily patches from Dal Lake has been the recurrent theme at the meetings of the Scientific Advisory Committee and the failure to uproot the patches has been thoroughly discussed in all recent meetings. Around 5 sq km lake area is covered by lilies. The minutes of…

Read More