Snowfall, rain usher winter in North
Famous tourist resorts Shimla, Manali and Dalhousie in Himachal Pradesh received the season’s first snowfall as rain drenched the Kashmir Valley and other parts of North India on Tuesday, ushering in winter chill across the region.
Delhiites wrapped themselves in woollens as light rain and breeze plummeted the day temperature in the national capital by 9°C compared to the previous day. Hills surrounding popular tourist destinations of Shimla, Manali and Dalhousie received the season’s first snowfall while the higher regions had heavy snowfall bringing in cold wave conditions in Himachal Pradesh.
Five to 15 cms of snow fall was recorded in the scenic Manali and Dalhousie while Solang Nallah and Rohtang Pass recorded 45 and 80 cms of snowfall respectively. The tribal areas, which received 70 to 100 cms of snow, groaned under arctic conditions with minimum temperatures hovering between - 8° and -13°C. In Uttarakhand’s Kumaon and Garhwal regions, fresh snow fall occurred as rains lashed several parts of the hill state dipping the mercury level by three to four notches below normal.
With weather office forecasting moderate to heavy snowfall in next few days in Kashmir, the night temperature across the region dipped below freezing point with Leh in Ladakh remaining the coldest place in the state.
According to the Met office, the night temperature across the Valley dipped below
freezing point with Leh recording its lowest temperature of the season with -12.4°C. Srinagar recorded a minimum temperature of -1.7°C while the famous tourist resort of Gulmarg was freezing at -7.5°C.
The 294-kms Srinagar-Jammu National Highway remained open for two way traffic on Tuesday despite slight drizzle.
Flights at Srinagar International Airport also operated normally on Tuesday, an official spokesperson said.
