Himachal sees rise in mercury, more snow in store

The hills of Himachal Pradesh on Saturday saw a marginal rise in the temperatures, but the Met Office here forecast crain and more snowfall in the next three days.

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

"There are chances of widespread rainfall and snowfall in the state from January 20 to 24," Meteorological Office Director Manmohan Singh told IANS.

He said the western disturbances - storm systems originating from Caspian Sea and moving across the Afghanistan-Pakistan region - would be active again in the region.

Most of the prominent tourist towns like Shimla, Narkanda, Kufri, Manali and Dalhousie might witness moderate snowfall mainly from January 20, he said.

The supply of essential commodities and transportation of people may get hampered in remote areas of the state with snowfall, a government official told IANS.

Keylong in Lahaul and Spiti district was the coldest in the state with a low of minus 5.2 degrees Celsius against Friday's minus 7 degrees.

Shimla recorded the minimum temperature at 7.7 degrees Celsius. It saw a low of 4.2 degrees on Friday.

Kalpa in Kinnaur district recorded a low of minus 1.8 degrees Celsius, while it was 3.2 degrees in Kufri, 5.7 degrees in Dalhousie and 6.2 degrees at Dharamsala.

--IANS

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