Not Just Lack Of Snowfall, January Was The Warmest And Driest In Jammu And Kashmir In 43 Years

Parts of Jammu and Kashmir, including the summer capital Srinagar are currently experiencing sub-zero temperatures and heavy snowfall, which came as a welcome relief for both residents and tourists.

Just a few weeks ago, there was little to no snowfall in Kashmir, which threatened to affect normal life and the tourism industry in the valley.

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Warmest January in Kashmir

According to the IMD data, January 2024 was the warmest and driest Jammu and Kashmir has recorded in 43 years.

In terms of snowfall or rains, Srinagar city witnessed the second driest January in the past four decades, recording a mere 3.0 mm of precipitation in the month this year, it said.

The lowest precipitation in the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir was recorded in January 2018 when only 1.2 mm of rainfall or snow took place.

According to data, the mean Tmax (maximum temperature) recorded in January over Srinagar station was 11.9 degrees Celsius while for Gulmarg in north Kashmir and Banihal in Ramban district, it was 5.7 degrees Celsius and 16.9 degrees Celsius respectively.

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No snowfall in January

Jammu city recorded the lowest mean maximum temperature for the first month of the year in over four decades, it said.

This is the highest mean maximum temperature for the month of January for these stations in the past 43 years, the MeT centre said.

"2024 January was one of the driest and warmest January in the last 43 years for most of the stations of J-K except the stations of plains of Jammu (Jammu, Samba and Kathua)," it added.

It said Jammu station, on the other hand, observed a mean maximum temperature of 13.4 degrees Celsius in January, which is the lowest since 1983.

The mean minimum temperature for January observed over Srinagar, Jammu, Gulmarg and Banihal were minus 3.2 degrees Celsius, 5.5 degrees Celsius, minus 3.9 degrees Celsius and 0.1 degrees Celsius respectively.

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Snowfall back in parts of Kashmir

However, things have started changing in the past few weeks, and even after 'Chilla-i-Kalan' -- the 40-day harshest winter period ended earlier this week, the cold wave has continued in Kashmir.

On Thursday, Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, recorded a low of minus 5.2 degrees Celsius.

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The minimum temperature in Gulmarg skiing resort in north Kashmir fell to minus 12 degrees Celsius, while Pahalgam tourist resort in south Kashmir, which serves as the base camp for the annual Amarnath yatra, recorded a low of minus 11.9 degrees Celsius.

Kokernag and Qazigund towns in south Kashmir recorded a low of minus 4.5 degrees and minus 6.4 degrees Celsius, respectively, officials said.

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