Daily Times

With the much-awaited snowfall coupled with rains on upper reaches and certain plains in northern part of Azad Jammu Kashmir, the dry spell that persisted in the region for about a couple of months, ended on Saturday.

Mercury fell down to greater extent turning weather chilled in top mountainous scenic Neelam and Leepa vallies of AJK that received the first snowfall since wee hours on Saturday, authoritative sources told this APP Correspondent when contacted.

The inclement weather led to a dip in the day temperature. However, the night temperature improved to intolerable chillness in the top mountainous terrain of the liberated territory.

The persistent long dryness for past a couple of months caused seasonal diseases including allergy, flue and fever in various parts of AJK besides reducing the water level in rivers and dams to considerable extent because of the lack of rains in the region since past many months as well.

Various top mountainous parts of Azad Jammu & Kashmir received heaviest snow and rainfall of the just starting season since mid last night of Friday and Saturday in various parts of AJK including Neelam and Leepa valleys, Rawalakot besides some adjoining areas of the state lashed with the inaugural heavy Snowfall of the season coupled with thunder storm turning the weather chilly, forcing the people to go into the heavy clothing.

In the snow-clad top mountainous Neelam and Leepa vallies the locals were compelled to be confined into their houses to avert negative impacts of the harshness of the suddenly changed chilly weather on the normal life, a local journalist Khawaja Shahid Iqbal told this Correspondent from the snowy mountainous Neelam valley over telephone on Sunday.

In Mirpur division, the rains are much awaited in this southern part of AJK comprising Mirpur, Kotli and Bhimbher districs following much prolonged continual dry weather that throw hundreds of people in seasonal diseases, epidemic including flue, cough, influenza.

Metreological department, had, predicted arrival of rainfall in plains and snowfall at top mountainous parts of the AJK, but only upper reaches of the liberated territory were blessed with the snowfall minus rainfall in plains in this southern region. The entire region, passing through the dry weather since about last three to four months.