Why Kashmir is without snow

Subject: Polity

Section: Federalism

Context:

Snowfall events in the Ladakh-Jammu and Kashmir region have been showing a declining trend in recent years.

More on news:

Government data shows that 95,989 tourists, including 547 foreigners, had visited Gulmarg in January last year.
Officials said the footfall seemed to be at least 60 percent lower this year.
Snowfall in Kashmir attracts tourists and is crucial for the local climate, winter crops and horticulture, availability of waters in streams and rivers, and for the local economy as well.
Winter precipitation in Jammu and Kashmir and in Ladakhis mainly in the form of snowfall.
As per India Meteorological Department (IMD) data, Jammu and Kashmir saw 80 per cent rainfall deficit in December and 100 percent (absolutely no rain) deficit in January so far.
The overall decreasing trend of snowfall has been attributed to a decline in western disturbance events and gradual rise in temperatures, which involves the role of climate change.

Reasons for low snowfall

Western Disturbances:

Winter precipitation in the Himalayan region is caused mainly by Western Disturbances.
These are large eastward-moving rain-bearing wind systems that originate beyond Afghanistan and Iran, picking up moisture from as far as the Mediterranean Sea and even the Atlantic Ocean.
Western Disturbances are the primary source of rainfall over north and northwest India during the post-monsoon and winter months.
Western disturbances have been showing a declining trend in recent times.

Increasing temperatures:

Temperatures in Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh region are rising at a faster pace.
The rate of increase of temperature is seen to be higher in the upper elevation areas than in the plains.
This is also contributing to the decline in snowfall.

El Nino:

There have been several years in the last one decade i.e. 2022, 2018, 2015 — when winters have been relatively dry in Jammu and Kashmir, and snowfall has been very low.
El Nino has persisted for a few months and will continue to do so in the coming months,affecting the global atmospheric circulation and contributing to the deficit precipitation in the region .
Even in the absence of El Nino, some years had seen very less snowfall.

Repercussions

Less snowfall in the region is expected to have both short-term and long-term implications.
Long-term implications include the
- generation of less hydroelectricity
- an increase in the rate of glacier melting
- an adverse impact on the drinking water supply as scanty snowfall means very little recharge of groundwater.
Short term implications include
- a dry spell can result in an increase in forest fires,
- agricultural drought, and
- a drop in crop production.
Other implications:
- It can lead to an early spring leading to early flowering, which can cause a reduction in yield.
- Yields of apples or saffron are badly affected in the absence of snowfall as winter snow is a source of steady moisture to the soil.