Chillai Kalan

Chillai Kalan

News: Kashmir is in a deep freeze as the 40-day harshest spell of winter, locally called ‘chillai kalan’ has started with the minimum temperature already sub-zero in the entire Valley.

Chillai Kalan
• Chillai Kalan is the coldest 40-day period of harsh winter of winter in the Jammu and Kashmir region.
• It is traditionally defined as a seasonal period of harsh winter accompanied by a change in increase in both, frequency and quantity of precipitation usually snow.It begins from December 21 and ends on January 31 next year.It is followed by a 20-day long Chillai-Khurd (small cold) that occurs between January 31 and February 19 and a 10-day long Chillai-Bachha (baby cold).According to Persian tradition, the night of 21st December is celebrated as Shab-e Yalda-“Night of Birth”, or Shab-e Chelleh “Night of Forty”.
• In the Persian tradition, the night of December 21, the longest of the year, is celebrated as Shab-e-Yalda (night of birth) or Shab-e-Chelleh.Dozens of netizens from Kashmir named it the ‘Pheran Day’, after the long woollen gown worn during the winters in Kashmir.Use of a traditional firing pot called Kangri increases.
• Tap water pipelines partially freeze during this period. The Dal Lake also freezes.
• The famous tourist resort of Gulmarg receives heavy snow which attracts skier’s from every part of the world.