The weather across Kashmir is expected to remain largely cloudy till January 15, , according to the MeT forecast.
A MeT official said January 4 and 5 are expected to remain mostly dry across the region, providing relief from active winter conditions.
On January 6, weather is likely to turn generally cloudy, with a possibility of light snowfall over isolated higher reaches of North and Central Kashmir.
He said that plains and lower areas are unlikely to witness any significant precipitation during this period. However, higher altitude areas may experience brief snowfall if cloud cover intensifies.
“From January 7 to January 15, weather conditions are expected to remain partly cloudy across Kashmir. No major wet spell or widespread snowfall is anticipated during this phase, allowing normal daily activities to continue without major disruption,” the MeT official said.
The forecast suggests that the ongoing cold wave conditions may persist due to nighttime temperature drops, even as precipitation activity remains limited in the coming days.
Due to a partially clear night sky, night temperatures throughout the Valley remained below the freezing point, as the prospects of snowfall evaded the plains, with dry, cold conditions again affecting these areas.
Srinagar recorded a minimum temperature of minus 3.2 degrees Celsius, Gulmarg minus 6.5 degrees Celsius and Pahalgam minus 4 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, absence of a major snowfall in Jammu and Kashmir and the first snowfall of the season in the plains of the Valley is becoming a major cause of concern, especially when the 40-day long period of intense winter cold called the ‘Chillai Kalan’, which started on December 21, has so far failed to produce any major snowfall so far.
The Chillai Kalan will end on January 30, and the Meteorological Department has forecast generally dry weather in Jammu and Kashmir till January 20.
If a major snowfall does not occur during the Chillai Kalan, Jammu and Kashmir is in for very tough times during the hot summer months.
Not only irrigation, but the basic human requirement of potable water would be adversely affected in the absence of heavy winter snowfall.
All rivers, streams, springs, wells and lakes of Jammu and Kashmir are sustained by perennial water reservoirs situated in the mountains.
These reservoirs get replenished by heavy snowfall during the winter months.