Shimla sees season's second light snowfall; tourism, farming sectors cheer

Shimla: Himachal Pradesh's capital, Shimla, on Monday witnessed the second light snowfall of the season, bringing cheer to tourists, locals and farmers.

Residents cald in woolen clothes stepped out to enjoy the snowflakes under an overcast sky, as icy winds swept through the region. Tourists were seen reveling in the snowfall at The Ridge and mall road in town.

Snowfall was also occurred in nearby tourists spots of Kufri and Narkanda besides higher reaches including Kharapathar, Chaurdhar and Chanshal, the weather officer said.

The local meteorological department had forecast rain and snow in mid and higher reaches on Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday.

Snowfall, often termed "white manure" for apples, has raised hopes for good yields among farmers in the upper Shimla region. Apple farming contributes about Rs 5,000 crore to Himachal Pradesh's economy.

The snowfall is expected to boost tourist footfall in the state providing a fillip to local tourism business. A local hotelier Sushant Nag said that hotel occupancy is set to rise as snowfall draws tourists.

Another Shimla-based hotelier Rahul Chawla said that snowfall ahead of Christmas and predictions of more in the coming days could lead to a 50 percent increase in tourist arrivals.

Shimla Hotel and Tourism Stakeholders Association president M K Seth had earlier said that that there are heavy bookings for Christmas and over 30 percent advance booking for New Year.

Meanwhile, intense cold wave persisted in the lower hills of Himachal Pradesh, with Una, Hamirpur, Chamba and Mandi experiencing cold wave conditions and Sundernagar reeling under severe cold wave.

Shallow fog was witnessed in Mandi and Sundernagar areas, the meteorological department said.

The department on Monday issued an orange alert for severe cold in Bilaspur, Una, Hamirpur and Mandi districts till Thursday.

Tabo was coldest place in the state at minus 10.6 degrees Celsius while Sumdo, Kusumseri and Kalpa recorded lows of minus 5.3 degrees Celsius, minus 3.7 degrees Celsius and minus 2.5 degrees Celsius, respectively, it said.

A yellow warning for dense fog over parts of the Bakra Dam reservoir area and Balh valley in Mandi has been issued from Tuesday to Thursday. according to the weather station.

Thick ground frost is expected in isolated parts of the lower hills during this period, it added.

The weather office said an active western disturbance is likely to affect the western Himalayan region and adjoining plains from Friday.

Light rain and snow are likely at isolated places over the state on Monday and Tuesday and at many places on Friday and Saturday, causing a gradual fall in temperatures, it said.

High-altitude tribal areas and mountain passes continued to experience biting cold, with temperatures 14 to 18 degrees below freezing point, the Met office said.

Water pipes froze at many places in mid and higher hills while natural sources of water like springs, rivulets and tributaries of snow-fed rivers froze, reducing water discharge and affecting hydropower generation.

The post-monsoon rain deficit from October 1 to December 23 stood at 97 per cent, with the state receiving 2.3 mm of rain against an average of 69.2 mm.