Srinagar:
Srinagar city, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, witnessed the first sub-zero night of this winter as the minimum temperature in almost all parts of the Valley and Ladakh region stayed below the freezing point.
Srinagar recorded a minimum temperature of minus 0.2 degrees Celsius on Monday night, the first time the mercury has fallen below the freezing point in the city this winter, MET officials said.
They said Gulmarg ski resort in north Kashmir's Baramulla district was the coldest place in the Valley where the minimum temperature was recorded at minus 5.5 degrees Celsius.
The officials said Pahalgam in south Kashmir's Anantnag district recorded minus 3.7 degrees Celsius while the Valley's gateway town, Qazigund, recorded minus 1.8 degrees Celsius. Kupwara was the only place in the Valley where minimum temperature stayed marginally above freezing point at 0.9 degrees Celsius, they added.
Although some parts of Kashmir received a slight drizzle over the weekend, the general dry atmospheric conditions have resulted in a sharp increase in common ailments like allergies, cold, fever, chest infections and sore throat.
Most affected are children, elderly and those with history of respiratory problems like asthma, a doctor at
state-run SMHS hospital said.
Meanwhile, Leh town in Ladakh region was the coldest recorded place in the state where mercury plunged to minus 9.6 degrees Celsius last night while the nearby town of Kargil recorded minus 6.0 degrees Celsius.