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Kashmir freezes early: Srinagar grips pherans, kangris as cold wave chokes daily life

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Srinagar: As temperatures plunge across the Kashmir Valley, residents in Srinagar have turned to traditional winter practices, wrapping themselves in pherans, carrying kangris, and gathering around makeshift roadside bonfires, especially near the famed Dal Lake. These scenes have now become a daily sight as the region battles an early and intense cold wave.

The severe drop in minimum temperatures, now below the freezing point, has disrupted daily life and hit daily-wage workers the hardest. Many say work has become scarce due to foggy mornings and biting cold.

Local resident Tariq Anwar explained the difficulties, saying, "There are a lot of problems in this cold. When we come out for work, it is foggy in the morning; the weather is very cold, because of which we are not able to do any work. It is very cold in the mornings and evenings. During the day, it is better, so we get some work. It has been very cold for the last two days."

Daily wagers say the cold has slowed down most outdoor activity, directly affecting their earnings. Tariq Ahmed, another daily wager, shared,

"It's very cold when we wake up in the morning. The water is cold, and we are very inconvenienced because of that.

I am a daily wager; in the cold, I don't get enough work, but still manage to get 2-4 days of work.

In this weather, our hands and body get cold, because of which we don't get enough work."

Residents say the cold wave has arrived earlier than expected, even though Chilla-i-Kalan, the harshest 40-day winter phase in Kashmir, officially begins only on December 21.

According to the meteorological department, the weather is likely to remain mainly dry on Sunday, while higher reaches in north and central Kashmir may witness a brief spell of light snowfall on Monday.

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