Snowfall, rain hit Uttarakhand

High-altitude areas across Uttarakhand received fresh snowfall on Wednesday, bringing cheer to tourists, while the lower areas were lashed by incessant showers, adding to the chill.

It snowed heavily at places located at a height of 2,000 metres and above while a constant drizzle hit the lower areas of the hills and the plains in general, the MeT office said.

The higher reaches of the mountainous districts of Chamoli, Tehri, Uttarkashi and Pithoragarh were covered under layers of snow.

Ranichauri, Chamba, Kanatal, Thangdhar, Surkanda Devi, Dhanolti, Pratap Nagar, Sem-Mukhem, Gangi, Genwali, Dandachali and Kemundakhal in Tehri district received snow.

Tourists enjoyed the snowfall but the Chamba-Mussoorie highway, the Lambgaon-Kotalgaon-Kemundakhal highway and the Lambgaon-Pratap Nagar highway got clogged with snow, disrupting traffic.

With the highways closed in Tehri district, many tourists were stuck in Dhanolti. New Tehri recorded a minimum temperature of minus 2 degrees Celsius.

Chamoli District Magistate Swati S Bhadoria ordered all anganwadi centres to remain closed till Thursday and asked officials to get the snow-clogged roads cleared, besides restoring power and water supply to around 130 villages lashed by snow and rain.