Rains lash Kashmir plains, Gulmarg receives snowfall

Srinagar, Mar 22: The plains of Kashmir experienced heavy rainfall, while the Gulmarg ski resort in north Kashmir's Baramulla district received fresh snowfall in the past 24 hours, much to the delight of tourists.

The Meteorological Department officials said that Gulmarg received 1.5 cm of fresh snowfall.

Srinagar and other parts of Kashmir witnessed light to moderate rains, leading to a drop in temperatures.

According to the MeT office, Srinagar received 9.7 mm of rainfall, Qazigund 3.4 mm, Pahalgam 16 mm, Kupwara 9.2 mm, Kokernag 2.9 mm, and Gulmarg 18.4 mm of rainfall in the past 24 hours till 8:30 am on Friday.

The sky remained overcast, and there is a forecast of rain or snow in Kashmir with an expected improvement in weather from Saturday and thereafter until March 26.

From March 27 onwards, intermittent light rain and snow are possible for the next four days.

Meanwhile, the night temperatures in most weather stations across Kashmir dropped but remained above freezing.

The day temperature also dropped significantly, with Srinagar recording 16.2 degrees Celsius against the previous day's 22.8 degrees Celsius.

Srinagar recorded a low of 7.2 degrees Celsius, which was 2.2 degrees Celsius above normal.

Qazigund had a low of 7 degrees Celsius against the previous night's 6 degrees Celsius, while Kokernag recorded 5.6 degrees Celsius against the previous night’s 8.2 degrees Celsius.

Gulmarg's night temperature dropped to -0.5 degrees Celsius from the previous night's 3.2 degrees Celsius, still 1.1 degrees Celsius above normal.

Pahalgam recorded 3.7 degrees Celsius against the previous night's 3 degrees Celsius, which was 3.3 degrees Celsius above normal.

Kupwara settled at 6.6 degrees Celsius against the previous night's 7.3 degrees Celsius, 3.4 degrees Celsius above normal.

The MeT office advised residents and tourists to be prepared for the possibility of further precipitation and fluctuations in temperatures in the coming days.