Shimla, nearby spots wrapped in snow

Himachal Pradesh's capital Shimla and its nearby tourist spots received a spell of snow on Sunday after a long dry weather, giving the resort and its neighbouring areas a picturesque look.

Towns in upper Shimla district were cut off with heavy snow cover piled on roads, officials said.

This was the season's second significant snowfall that froze the "Queen of Hills", as Shimla was fondly called by the erstwhile British rulers.

As news of the snowfall spread, tourists started arriving in Shimla and its nearby places like Kufri, Mashobra and Narkanda.

Hills overlooking Manali like Gulaba, Solang and Kothi have been experiencing moderate snow since early Sunday, according to a meteorological official here. Manali town, however, remained devoid of any snowfall.

Shimla recorded a minimum temperature of three degrees Celsius, while it was one degree in Manali and 0.9 degrees in Dalhousie in Chamba district.

"The higher reaches of Lahaul-Spiti, Kinnaur, Kullu, Shimla, Sirmaur and Chamba districts have been experiencing snowfall since Saturday night while mid and lower hills are experiencing rain," the official said.

Kalpa in Kinnaur district and Keylong in Lahaul and Spiti have also experienced snowfall.

Dharamsala in Kangra district, which experienced 47.2 mm rain, recorded a low of 6.2 degrees Celsius.

Meanwhile, traffic movement beyond Dhalli, 10 km from Shimla, was suspended as a large stretch of the Hindustan-Tibet Road was under a thick blanket of snow.

The entire Kinnaur district and towns in Shimla district such as Narkanda, Jubbal, Kotkhai, Kumarsain, Kharapathar, Rohru and Chopal are cut off due to heavy snow, a government official said.

The Met Office said a Western disturbance -- a storm system originating from the Mediterranean-Caspian Sea region and moving across the Afghanistan-Pakistan region -- would remain active till Monday, bringing in its wake rain and snow.