Srinagar, Dec 26 (IANS) As night temperatures continued to remain several notches below the freezing point in Kashmir, the famous Dal Lake froze solid at the top on Thursday.

The minimum temperature was minus 7 degrees Celsius in Srinagar while it was minus 6 and minus 8.6 in Gulmarg and Pahalgam respectively.

Jammu city had 6.6, Katra town 8, Batote 1.7, Banihal 0.7 and Bhaderwah minus 1.1 degrees.

Kashmir Valley continued to remain in the grip of intense cold as markets, streets and main roads remained almost deserted in the morning due to extreme chill and highly slippery road conditions.

Boatmen virtually gave up fighting their way through half-frozen Dal Lake in Srinagar as the freeze set deeper and firmer on the lake's surface.

At many places by the banks of River Jhelum, houseboats appeared to have been ‘grounded’ due to the surrounding frozen water.

Long icicles and frost have become a common sight in Srinagar city and the rest of the Valley. Water taps refuse to defreeze and many areas in the city have been complaining of a lack of potable water for the last four days.

The Meteorological (MeT) department has forecast dry, cold weather to continue for the next 48 hours although any major change in weather is also ruled out till the first week of January.

The 40-day-long period of extreme winter cold called the ‘Chillai Kalan’ started with full fury on December 21 and will end on January 30.

Seeing a clear, cloudless sky is a luxury rarely seen during the days of the Chillai Kalan.

The overall winter gloom often becomes depressing for people as electricity plays hide and seek while locals have to depend on traditional firewood in the countryside to stand the bone-chilling cold.

Despite Chief Minister Omar Abdullah camping in Srinagar, there is no improvement in the electric power supply. He went to local hospitals on Wednesday to ensure that healthcare facilities remained alert to the challenges posed by the biting winter cold.

--IANS

sq/dpb