New Delhi: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned that weather conditions in Himachal Pradesh may worsen from Monday due to a fresh western disturbance, issuing yellow and orange alerts for heavy snowfall, rain, thunderstorms, lightning and strong winds across the state.
A yellow alert has been issued for all 12 districts on Monday, predicting thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds at isolated places, with wind speeds likely to reach 50–70 kmph. For Tuesday, the weather office has issued an orange alert for Kullu, Kinnaur, Chamba and Lahaul and Spiti districts, predicting heavy snowfall and rain, while the remaining districts will remain under a yellow alert.
The warning comes even as normalcy is yet to fully return in the hill regions following heavy snowfall on January 23, which severely disrupted daily life. According to the State Emergency Operations Centre, as many as 835 roads, including three national highways, remained closed on Sunday.
Power supply affected in many areas
In the tribal district of Lahaul and Spiti alone, 282 roads were blocked, including the Leh–Manali highway (NH-3) and the Kaza–Gramphu road (NH-505). In other districts, 234 roads were closed in Shimla, 110 in Mandi, 78 in Chamba, 65 in Kullu including NH-305, 41 in Sirmaur, 18 in Kinnaur, four in Kangra and three in Una. Connectivity of upper Shimla areas such as Rohru, Chopal, Jubbal and Kotkhai remains cut off from district headquarters for the third consecutive day.
Power supply has also been badly affected, with around 1,942 transformers disrupted across the state, leaving thousands of households without electricity. Shimla district alone reported 789 affected transformers, followed by Sirmaur (354), Mandi (284), Chamba (277) and Kullu (174).
Temperature in several towns dropped below freezing
The IMD said adverse weather may persist in higher-altitude areas on January 28 and 29, though no formal alert has been issued for those days. The weather is expected to clear briefly on January 30 before deteriorating again on January 31.
Cold wave conditions have intensified across the state following rain and snowfall. Minimum temperatures in several towns dropped below freezing, with Tabo in Lahaul and Spiti recording the lowest temperature of minus 10 degrees Celsius. Kukumseri recorded -7.9°C, Kalpa -4°C, Manali and Narkanda -1.1°C, Dharamshala -0.6°C, Rekong Peo -0.7°C and Sarahan -0.3°C.
Despite the disruptions, fresh snowfall has boosted tourism across the state, with a surge in tourist footfall in destinations such as Shimla, Manali, Kufri, Dharamshala, Chail and Dalhousie.