Himachal braces for severe weather

Shimla, Jan 18 (IANS) Himachal Pradesh will receive widespread snowfall and rain between January 20 and 24, the weather office here warned on Friday.

Residents and tourists have been advised not to venture out on the high hills till January 24 as chances of snapping of road links were high.

Shimla, Narkanda, Chail, Kufri, Kalpa, Dalhousie and Manali were likely to receive moderate spells of snowfall, Met Director Manmohan Singh told IANS. These towns had witnessed moderate spells of snowfall on January 13.

Kufri, Narkanda, Manali and Dalhousie were already covered in a thick blanket of snow. The supply of essential commodities and transportation of people may get hampered in remote areas of the state, a government official told IANS.

The western disturbances -- storm systems originating from Caspian Sea and moving across the Afghanistan-Pakistan region -- were likely to be active in the region from Friday evening, Singh added.

"The impact of the western disturbances will be largely seen in the state from January 22 to 24 with possibility of heavy snowfall in the high hills of Shimla, Kinnaur, Sirmaur, Kullu, Chamba, Mandi and Lahaul-Spiti districts," he added.

There would also be high moisture fed from the Arabian Sea over northwest India, especially the western Himalayan region, from January 20, enabling chances of widespread snow and rain, the Met said.

On the lower altitude, Dharamsala, Palampur, Solan, Nahan, Bilaspur, Una, Hamirpur and Mandi towns were likely to see widespread rain that would bring down the temperatures considerably.

Shimla on Friday recorded a minimum temperature of 4.2 degrees Celsius, while it was minus 3.6 degree in Kalpa, minus 1.2 degree in Manali, 4 degrees in Dalhousie, 2 degrees in Kufri and 4.2 degrees in Dharamsala.