Chandigarh, January 22: As forecast, the capital of Himachal Pradesh and picturesque Manali and Dalhousie received heavy snowfall on Tuesday, leaving tourists happy and road links snapped.
The road beyond Kufri has been closed for vehicular traffic, with Shimla, Kufri and Narkanda witnessing heavy snowfall since morning. Met Director Manmohan Singh said heavy snowfall will occur in Shimla, Kullu, Mandi, Kinnaur, Lahaul-Spiti and Chamba districts till Wednesday. Shimla will stay under snow cover for next two-three days.
Shimla, which saw a low of minus 0.7 degree Celsius, recorded more than five cm of snowfall, while Kufri and Mashobra recorded more than 20 cm of snowfall each. Reports said some of the areas in Jubbal, Narkanda and Kharapathar also experienced snow, hampering road network.
Traffic on the Shimla-Chandigarh highway came to a standstill after snowfall at Shoghi, leaving tourists stranded and road clearance work a difficult task.
Also Read: Dept issues 2-day snowfall red alert for J-K, Himachal
Manali, which saw five cm of snow, experienced a low of minus 1.2 degrees Celsius. Its nearby hills like the Solang ski slopes, Kothi and Gulaba also received snow.
Kalpa, 250 km from the state capital, and Keylong in Lahaul and Spiti district experienced heavy spells of snow.
Lower areas of the state, including Dharamsala, Palampur, Solan, Nahan, Bilaspur, Una, Hamirpur and Mandi towns received moderate to heavy rain, bringing down the temperature considerably.
This snowfall has brought cheer among the apple growers, as snow is considered as white manure for the crop. Moreover, lower temperatures would provide required chilling hours to the apple trees.
