Chilla-I-Kalan: All About Kashmir's Harshest Winter Period

By: EjazUlHaqBhat

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Chilla-I-Kalan is a 40-day period of intense cold in Kashmir that marks the harshest part of winter

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The term comes from Persian and literally means "the mighty cold". Chilla-I-Kalan begins on December 21 and ends on January 30

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During the 40 days of 'Chilla-I-Kalan', the chances of snowfall are the maximum and the temperature drops considerably

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Chilla-I-Kalan is followed by two other periods of cold - Chilla-I-Khurd, and Chilla-I-Bachha

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Chilla-I-Khurd is a 20-day period of "small cold" that begins on January 30 and ends on February 18

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Chilla-I-Bachha is a 10-day period of "baby cold" that is between February 19 and February 28

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During this 40-day period, Kashmir witnesses intense cold with surfaces of water bodies like famous Dal Lake freeze as temperatures drops considerably

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On the first day of Chilla-I-Kalan this year, Srinagar experienced coldest December night in five decades at minus 8.5 degrees Celsius, per weather office 

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