There has been just one major snowfall in the Valley this winter. The famous Achabal spring in Anantnag district which was decorated with a large garden by Empress Noor Jahan in 1620, has dried up. The perennial water reserves in the mountains have started melting because of unusually high day temperatures. The ‘Khelo India Gulmarg 2025’ games scheduled to be held in the ski resort of Gulmarg have been postponed as the resort has little snow to sustain winter sports. “We have become too materialistic and this has made us ignorant,” said Ghulam Mohammad Rather, a farmer in the north of the Valley. ‘The system of our faith is also showing signs of decay,’ said Mansar Nisar, an environment scientist at the University of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) “This is the real danger looming over our head. With no replenishment during the winter months, abnormally high temperatures force premature meltdown in perennial water. reserves and glaciers. Unless we get compensatory rainfall during the coming months, the scene is horrifying,“ said J&K environment scientist Mansar.
