Shimla receives season’s first snowfall

Shimla : Moderate to heavy snowfall continued in high hills and tribal areas of Himachal Pradesh on Thursday while the state capital received the first snowfall of the season bringing cheers to residents, tourists and farmers. Shimla was wrapped in a thin blanket of snow on Thursday while the 5-km stretch between Kufri and Fagu was entirely covered in snow. Braving the cold, tourists and residents thronged the Mall Road and Ridge in the heart of the city to enjoy the snow. Shimla was lashed by a severe hailstorm on Wednesday night followed by intermittent rains.

Over 240 roads, including six national highways, in the state have been closed for vehicular traffic and 677 transformers got disrupted following heavy snowfall and rain, according to the state emergency operation centre. A maximum of 165 roads remain blocked in tribal districts of Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti, the centre said.

The vehicular traffic in the upper Shimla area beyond Dhalli came to a standstill as the roads got blocked due to heavy snow in Kufri, Fagu and Narkanda. Vehicular movement has been halted at Dhalli due to snowfall and slippery road conditions, SP Shimla Sanjeev Kumar Gandhi told the PTI on Thursday. He added that the roads would be cleared soon. Intermittent snowfall has continued in five out of 12 districts since Tuesday night and the local MeT office has issued orange warning for heavy snow and rain at isolated places in five districts -- Shimla, Kullu, Chamba, Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti on February 1 and yellow alert for thunderstorm and lightning on February 3 and 4.