Cold wave grips country, mercury drops below freezing point

Lahore: A severe cold wave continues across the country, and the upper reaches are cold. The mercury has dropped below the freezing point.

Rivers, waterfalls and lakes in the upper reaches froze. The mercury in Leh dropped to -10 and -9 in Kalam, -8 in Kalat, Astore, Quetta, Gopis, Ziarat fell to -7, and -4 was recorded in Skardu, Drosh, Chitral, and Hunza.

Intermittent snowfall continues in the mountains of Azad Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Citizens are trapped in their homes, and there is a shortage of food and medicines. Life has been paralyzed due to heavy rain and snowfall in Kalat, Neelum Valley.

Rain in various cities of the country has increased the intensity of the cold, and ice hockey competitions have been announced on the frozen Khalti Lake in Gilgit-Baltistan. Children practiced ice hockey on the frozen lake.