Question

Write about the effect of climate change (with respect to winter) on the lifestyle of people of Kashmir.[100-150 words]​

Answer 1

Answer:

Starks are eventually right, Winter is coming”. These are the lines from the famous Game of thrones, where Maester Aeomon warns Tyrion about the coming days. The quote is to the point with regard to the approaching cold season in Kashmir. With the fading autumn and the falling of brown chinar leaves, the temperature is slowly but steadily dipping in the Valley. This happens to be the time when Kashmiris start preparing for the coming harsh winters.

This preparation has been a part of Kashmiris’ lifestyle and culture and has influenced many aspects of the lives of the people of Kashmir.

Answer 2

Answer:

Kashmir has been witnessing unusually dry weather conditions for the past few months. Even during the core winter period, precipitation remained extremely low. There was no snowfall in the upper reaches of the valley this year, with even the harshest period of winter in Kashmir, locally known as Chilla-i-Kalaan, passing with barely a flake.

According to the advocacy group ActionAid’s 2007 report on climate change in Kashmir, average temperatures in the region have shown a rise of 1.45 C., while in the Jammu region, the rise is 2.32 C.

On Feb. 24 this year, the temperature hit a 76-year high of 20.6 degrees C. – almost 10 degrees above normal.

Drought and rising temperatures have serious implications for the entire region, with impacts on millions of people in Pakistan who rely on Kashmir for water. According to the executive director of the Global Change Impacts Studies Centre in Pakistan, Dr Irshad Muhammad Khan, 75 to 80 percent of water flows to Pakistan as melt from the Himalayan glaciers.

As rivers dry up, transboundary water sharing between India and Pakistan will come under severe strain, experts warn – a situation likely to occur in other parts of the world as well.

Meanwhile, the sprouting of plants and blooming of some flower varieties—signs of spring in Kashmir—started at least one month ahead of the natural process due to the early warm temperatures. If there is a frost now, the crop could be ruined.

According to environmental experts, continued dry spells bode ill for agriculture in Kashmir.