Cold wave conditions continued unabated in Kashmir Valley with minimum temperatures remaining several degrees below the freezing point.
Landslides have occurred near Ramban and Battery Cheshma which have forced the closure of the highway.
The weatherman has forecast widespread downpour in the Valley on Saturday and scattered precipitation on Sunday.
Most places in Kashmir continued to reel under intense cold with the night temperature staying below the freezing point, while Kargil town in Ladakh region registered the season's coldest night at minus 9.2 degrees Celsius.
Operations at the Delhi airport remained normal. However, three flights were returned or diverted to the Delhi airport due to bad weather in Chandigarh, Varanasi and Lucknow on Tuesday night.
At least 15 Army troopers were killed and 17 injured when an avalanche struck a training camp of the Army in Khilanmarg area near the north Kashmir ski resort of Gulmarg Monday. Two are still missing.
A cold wave has gripped many parts of north and east India, with Srinagar recording a minimum temperature of minus 5.3 degrees Celsius. Other areas experiencing below-freezing temperatures include Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Konibal, Qazigund, Kupwara, and Kokernag in Kashmir. Himachal Pradesh has issued an orange warning for severe cold wave conditions in several districts. Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 5.9 degrees Celsius, while Faridkot in Punjab was the coldest in the region at 0 degrees Celsius. Extreme cold conditions also continued in parts of Rajasthan and Jharkhand. The Met office has forecast mainly dry weather until December 26, with the possibility of light snowfall in the higher reaches of Kashmir on the intervening night of December 21-22.
Heavy snowfall has blanketed Kashmir, bringing relief to the residents from dry weather. The snowfall, which began in the late afternoon on Friday, has continued in most parts of the valley, said officials, adding it is one of the heaviest snowfalls in the recent years in the plains of Kashmir.
Cold wave tightened its grip in Kashmir Valley on Saturday as the night temperature plummeted to the season's lowest in many places, resulting in the freezing of fringes of the famous Dal Lake for the first time this winter.
The road, the alternative link between Kashmir and rest of the country, was closed after the season's first heavy snowfall in the Jammu region.
The high hills of Himachal Pradesh received snowfall leaving tourists delighted.
Cold wave tightened its grip on Kashmir Valley ahead of the onset of 'Chillai-Kalan' -- the 40-day harshest winter period -- with the summer capital Srinagar and Leh town recording the coldest night of the season.
The cold conditions returned in Kashmir division as the night temperature in most places, including Leh, plunged further below the freezing point followed with clear skies and unusual sunny days.
Intense cold wave gripped Kashmir, with Kargil becoming the coldest place this winter.
This is the first major snowfall in Kashmir this winter, which was largely dry so far.
He had even visited the last post at Uri in north Kashmir, posing for pictures at a bridge treated as a Line of Control between India and Pakistan.
Leh in Ladakh region recorded the lowest temperature this winter as mercury plummeted to minus 17.1 degree Celsius on Tuesday night, a meteorological department official said.
Mercury continued its free fall in Kashmir division as Leh in Ladakh region recorded the coldest night this winter with a minimum temperature of minus 16.3 degrees Celsius.
The 40-day period marks the harshest phase of the winter in the Kashmir valley.
There was some respite in cold conditions in Kashmir as the mercury went up by several degrees at most places after four days of virtual free fall.
North India was in the grip of intense cold with 40 days of harshest winter period 'Chillai-Kalan' beginning in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday and icy winds sweeping across the plains.
Dense to very dense fog engulfed the Indo-Gangetic plains, including Delhi, for the second morning on the trot on Tuesday, lowering visibility to 50 metres in the city and affecting road traffic and train movement.
Pahalgam and Gulmarg were the only recorded places in the Valley where the mercury was below the freezing point.
The 40-day period of harshest winter ended on Saturday
Officials said the polling went off peacefully in all segments including special polling stations along the International Border and Line of Control (LoC) with no untoward incident reported from anywhere.
Fresh snowfall was recorded in the higher reaches of Kashmir overnight while the plains received rains, even as the mercury stayed above the freezing point at most places.
Cold wave tightened its grip further in Kashmir Valley and Ladakh region as minimum temperatures in most places dipped several degrees below the freezing point.
The Valley has witnessed heavy snowfall and sleet over the past two days.
Kashmir witnessed the season's heaviest snowfall.
Kashmir Valley on Thursday experienced fresh snowfall with most places, especially the plains, witnessing the first snow of the season, breaking the prolonged dry spell at the fag end of 'Chillai-Kalan', the 40-day period of harshest winter. While the snowfall was mild and brief, it nonetheless brought much joy to the locals.
Cold wave conditions remained unabated as the night temperature across Kashmir continued to stay below the freezing point with forecasts for dry spell.
For the first time in nearly two years, tourism has been on the rise in Kashmir. But what does that mean for the average Kashmiri, ponders Abhishek Mande Bhot after a recent visit to the Valley.
Intense cold conditions prevailed in parts of north India on Sunday as the mercury plummeted to minus 12.6 degrees Celsius in Leh, while the Kashmir valley braced for possible snowfall over two days from Monday
The intense cold wave conditions accompanied by snowfall have left 24 people dead in Uttarakhand.
Cold wave continued in Kashmir Valley and Ladakh region as the minimum temperature in most parts settled below the freezing point, with the frontier town of Kargil being the coldest place in the state at over minus 19 degrees Celsius.
The mercury continues to be in a free fall in Kashmir and Ladakh divisions as Leh was the coldest recorded place at minus 17.4 degrees Celsius in the state.
Mercury plummeted in Kashmir Valley on Thursdayafter a slight respite for few days, dropping further below the freezing point with Kargil recording a new low of minus 15.8 degrees Celsius this season.
The superstar is shooting for Yash Chopra's yet-untitled film.
A cop also lost his life in the encounter which took place at Najibhat crossing in Kreeri area in the north Kashmir district.
Srinagar recorded a low of minus 3.2 degrees Celsius, an increase of two degrees from the previous night's minus 5.2 degrees Celsius, a spokesman for the MET department said in Srinagar.
