Srinagar: Fresh snowfall on Saturday brought back cold conditions in the Valley where the day temperature for the past week was several degrees higher than normal for this time of the year, officials said.
Fresh snowfall was reported from most parts of Kashmir, including Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir.
Macchil and Z-Gali areas in remote Kupwara district recorded snow between one foot to 18 inches, while places like Gulmarg, Baramulla and Sonamarg recorded up to seven inches of snow, they said.
Srinagar has been witnessing rainfall since Friday night, followed by sleet and brief snowfall on Saturday.
The precipitation has brought down the day temperature by several degrees. While the maximum temperature on Friday was 15 degrees Celsius, the minimum temperature was 3.8 degrees Celsius.
The maximum temperature over the past week has been six to seven degrees above normal for this time of the year.
Deputy Director MeT, Mukhtar Ahmad said that the weather would start improving from tonight and will gradually improve from tomorrow.
He added that the mercury across the Valley would also increase as per the forecast.
Meanwhile, a day after it was thrown open for traffic, the road leading to a tourist resort of Sonmarg was on Saturday closed again as a ‘precautionary measure’ following the fresh snowfall in the area.
“We have temporarily closed Sonmarg road as a precautionary measure due to the heavy rainfall and slush at few places and there are chances of avalanche as well,” local news agency KNO quoted an official as saying.
He said that the Beacon and district administration have pressed men and machinery to clear the road.
