Atal Tunnel closed again after heavy snowfall in higher reaches of Himachal
Weather will remain clear from Sunday to Thursday, says meteorological department
Atal Tunnel across the Rohtang Pass has once again been closed for traffic after heavy snowfall in the higher reaches of Himachal Pradesh on Saturday. The middle and lower hills of the state got widespread rain amid a fresh western disturbance in the region.
Kullu superintendent of police (SP) Gaurav Singh said that the road will be cleared soon and advised people to avoid venturing into snow-prone areas.
Kothi received 30cm of snowfall, Keylong, the headquarters of the tribal Lahaul-Spiti district got 12cm of snowfall, Khadrala and Shilaroo received 10cm of snowfall each, Pooh in Kinnaur district and Dalhousie in Chamba district received 4cm of snowfall each and Kalpa in Kinnaur district received 3cm of snowfall. Palampur in Kangra district got 24.8mm of rainfall, Chamba 26mm, Kangra 20mm, Dharamshala 19.4mm, Mandi 17.2mm, Bilaspur and Una 16mm each, Paonta Sahib 15.8mm, Manali 12mm, Solan 10mm, Shimla 9.6mm and Nahan 8.6mm of rain.
MINIMUM TEMPERATURE ABOVE NORMAL IN STATE
State meteorological department director Manmohan Singh said that heavy snowfall and rainfall are likely to continue on Saturday and the weather will clear up from Sunday till December 17.
“The minimum temperatures in the state are two degrees above normal,” he said.
Shimla recorded a low of 3.6°C, while nearby Kufri was cold at 0.5°C. Manali, Dharamshala and Dalhousie recorded lows of 0°C, 5.6°C and minus 0.1°C, respectively.
The minimum temperature in Una was 9.2°C, Solan 7°C, Bilaspur and Hamirpur 8°C each, Nahan 11.9°C, Mandi 9°C and Kalpa was cold at minus 1°C. Keylong was coldest in the state at minus 2.9°C.
