Shimla, Dec 25 (IANS) Popular tourist destination Shimla on Sunday received the season's first snowfall, while the lower hills across Himachal Pradesh were lashed by rain, bringing the temperature down by several notches.
Hoteliers have cheered up with the snowfall in the hope that tourists will come in large numbers in the coming days.
Tourist spots near Shimla, such as honeymooners' paradise Kufri, Fagu and Narkanda also experienced mild snowfall, making the hill stations even more picturesque.
"It's really surprising to see snow this (Sunday) morning as for the past few days, Shimla was witnessing long sunny days," said Vaibhav Sharma, a tourist from Delhi, said.
Likewise, Manali's uphill Kothi, Dalhousie and Kalpa, 250 km from the state capital, saw snowfall.
However, in the state, the snow melted with the accompanying rain.
The Rohtang Pass, 52 km from Manali, has been experiencing heavy snowfall and is closed for motorists.
Meteorological office director Manmohan Singh told IANS that more snowfall might occur in Shimla, Kullu, Kinnaur, Lahaul-Spiti and Chamba districts till Monday.
"The higher reaches have been experiencing moderate snowfall since early Sunday, while mid and lower hills were lashed with rain," an official said.
The minimum temperature in Shimla was recorded at 3.8 degrees Celsius, whereas the maximum was 9.8 degrees.
Since Saturday, the night temperature of Shimla plunged by four degrees, while the maximum by 7.4 degrees.
Keylong in Lahaul and Spiti district was the coldest place in the state at minus 2.1 degrees Celsius.
It was 15.2 degrees Celsius in Dharamsala, minus 1.4 degrees Celsius in Kalpa and 3.2 degrees Celsius in Manali.
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