Prolonged dry spell amid rising temperatures in Jammu and Kashmir is a matter of serious environmental concern. Erratic weather patterns have started to affect ecological balance and hit food, energy, and water security in the eco-fragile Himalayan region.

It is almost a drought-like situation especially in Kashmir which is yet to receive major snowfall or rains amid the 40-day harshest winter period, Chillai Kalan.

Gulmarg, a world class ski resort in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district is bearing the brunt of the ongoing dry spell. The resort, used to bustle with skiing activities and record tourist flow during the period, wears a deserted look these days in the absence of snowfall.

It is surprising that Srinagar is warmer than Delhi, Chandigarh, Amritsar and Ludhiana these days. On January 13, Srinagar recorded a maximum temperature of 15 degrees Celsius. This is the sixth-highest recorded temperature in over a century. The summer capital had recorded 15.1 degrees Celsius on January 23, 2003, 15.5 degrees Celsius on January 9, 1976, 15.7 degrees Celsius on January 31, 2001, 15.8 degrees Celsius on January 25, 2010, and 17.2 degrees Celsius on January 23, 1902 respectively.

Similarly, on January 14, 2024, Jammu city recorded 2.5 degree celsius which was the lowest temperature since 2017. Kashmir’s lifeline, Jhelum river, recorded lowest ever water level. The gauge reading at Sangam was minus........

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