SRINAGAR; Kargil with minus 16.2 degree continued to freeze with further drop in the minimum temperature while icy cold winds continued to sweep Kashmir valley with sun playing hide and seek.

A fresh Western Disturbance (WD), which has originated in the Arbian sea and is entering the region through Afghanistan and Pakistan, will again hit Jammu and Kashmir on March 10. However, during the next 24 hours, the weather will remain mainly dry in the state, a Met department spokesman said

He said a fresh WD is likely to affect the state from March 10. Meanwhile, the mercury further dipped at border district of Kargil in Ladakh region and settled at minus 16.2 degree against Thursday's minus 14.4 degree.

Water bodies remained frozen and water level in main rivers has also dropped considerably. However, people are being supplied water through tankers while others are using spring water which remained warm during winter and cold in summer.

Leh also witnessed considerable drop of more than five degree in the night temperature due to open sky after fresh snowfall on upper reaches recently. Against Thursday's minus 4.6 degree, it was minus 10 degree minus temperature at Leh, he said.

World famous ski resort of Gulmarg remained coldest in the valley though it witnessed improvement of one notch. Against Thursday's minus 8.4 degree, the night temperature at Gulmarg was minus 7.4 degree, 2.4 notches below normal.

At Pahalgam, a health resort in south Kashmir, the minimum temperature was minus 6.8 degree about five notches below normal. The summer capital, Srinagar, also witnessed drop in the minimum temperature due to clear sky during the night. Against Thursday's 3 degree, it was 0.0 degree, two degree below normal in Srinagar.

North Kashmir Kupwara, a frontier district, recorded minus 1.5 degree, more than two notches below normal. At Qazigund, gateway of Kashmir in south Kashmir, it was minus 0.2 degree and Kokernag recorded 0.7 degree minimum temperature