40-day harsh winter period starts in Valley

Chillai-Kalan — the 40-day harshest winter period in Kashmir — started on Thursday on a wet note as the higher reaches of the valley received fresh snowfall while the plains were lashed by rains.

Fresh snowfall was recorded at the twin resorts of Gulmarg and Pahalgam during the night as Chillai-Kalan marked its beginning in Kashmir, an official of the Met department here said.

He said while Gulmarg recorded 1.8 cm of snow, Pahalgam received nine cms of fresh snowfall on Wednesday night.

Many other areas in the higher reaches of the valley also received fresh snowfall, the official said.

He said Srinagar and other areas in the plains of the valley were lashed by rains and owing to cloud cover, the night temperature increased across Kashmir division, including Ladakh region.

Srinagar recorded a low of 3.1 degrees Celsius on Wednesday night, an increase from 2.3 degrees Celsius on Tuesday night, the official said.

The Met office has forecast isolated downpour in the valley over the next 24 hours.

Chillai-Kalan is the period when the chances of snowfall are most frequent and maximum and the temperature drops considerably.

It ends on January 31 next year, but the cold wave continues even after that in the valley.

The 40-day period is followed by a 20-day long Chillai- Khurd (small cold) and a 10-day long Chillai-Bachha (baby cold).

INTENSE COLD WAVE CONTINUES IN HP

The intense cold wave conditions continued unabated in Himachal Pradesh on Thursday as high altitude tribal areas witnessed another spell of light snowfall, causing a marginal dip in mercury.

The local MeT office has predicted rains or snow in the higher hills for three days from December 23 and dry weather in rest of the state for the next six days.

CHILLAIKALAN IS THE PERIOD WHEN THE CHANCES OF SNOWFALL ARE MOST FREQUENT, AND THE TEMPERATURE DROPS CONSIDERABLY