Harsh 40-day winter is a double-edged sword for Kashmiri folks

Tourists visiting a partially frozen waterfall in Drang village. — Photos: AP

The skies are overcast. On the plains, temperatures have dropped below freezing. High on the mountains, peaks are draped in thick snow.

This is the time of “Chillai Kalan”, also called “The Great Winter”, a Kashmiri phrase that defines the harshest 40 days of cold in disputed Kashmir that commence in late December and extend into January and early February.