Mild snow in parts of Himachal, weather office predicts more precipitation

Shimla: Isolated places and higher reaches of Chamba, Kullu, and Kinnaur districts of Himachal Pradesh recorded mild snowfall on Monday, the local Met office said.

It has issued an 'orange' warning for light to moderate snowfall at a few places, with one or two intense spells in the Lahaul and Spiti and the Kinnaur districts.

It has also warned of snowfall in the higher reaches of Shimla, Chamba, Mandi, Kullu, and Kangra districts.

Kalpa in Kinnaur district recorded 1 cm of snow. There were also reports of snowfall from Manali and adjoining areas and Pangi in Chamba.

The Met office has issued rainfall warnings for a few places in Hamirpur, Sirmaur, Solan and parts of Shimla, Chamba, Mandi, Kangra and Kullu districts.

The snowfall warning led to police in Lahaul and Spiti issuing an advisory, asking people to stay away from sensitive areas and avoid unnecessary travel. The Mandi administration has advised the public to avoid travel to the higher reaches.

Hundreds of roads in the state are closed due to landslides and flash floods in the past few days and work to restore them is underway.

The Himachal Pradesh School Education Board has decided to postpone annual examinations for classes 8 to 12, scheduled to begin on Tuesday, in the snow-hit areas of Pangi in Chamba district and the Lahaul and Spiti district till Saturday, officials said.

Roads in Pangi and the Lahaul and Spiti district have been severely damaged by heavy rain and snow during the past few days, leading to the closure of several routes. As a result, question papers and other examination material could not be delivered to these regions.

The examinations will follow the original schedule in other parts of the state.

There was no appreciable change in minimum temperatures. Keylong in the tribal Lahaul and Spiti district was the coldest place, recording a night temperature of minus 10.2 degree Celsius.

Maximum temperatures declined markedly, with Dhaulakuan in Sirmaur the warmest at 26.3 degrees Celsius.