After nearly three months of dry weather across the hill state, a fresh western disturbance is likely to affect the upper reaches of Himachal Pradesh from Friday night. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said this may bring light snowfall in some areas, while most other parts of the state are likely to remain dry.
Sandeep Kumar Sharma, Senior Scientist at IMD Himachal Pradesh, on Friday said weather conditions have remained largely dry over the past 24 hours.
“If we talk about the overall weather, it has remained dry even during the last 24 hours. Today, on the 16th, a feeble western disturbance is approaching Himachal Pradesh. Its impact will be limited, but there is a possibility of light to moderate snowfall at a few places,” Sharma said.
The IMD official said the higher-altitude areas of Kinnaur, Lahaul-Spiti, and Chamba districts are mostly to be affected by western disturbance. “Till the 19th, there is a possibility of light snowfall in the higher reaches of Chamba, Lahaul-Spiti, and Kinnaur. There may also be light rain at isolated places,” he added.
As per the IMD, districts like Kangra, Mandi, and Kullu may witness light rain or snowfall at isolated places. However, plains and mid-hill districts, including Una, Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Solan, Shimla, and Sirmaur, are expected to see cloudy skies with very little chance of precipitation.
Talking about cold wave conditions, Sharma said, “If we talk about alerts, light cold wave conditions have been reported in some pockets of Hamirpur, Una, Mandi and Kangra. There is a possibility of a cold morning in these areas, though the probability of fog is low."
He also stated that the lowest minimum temperature in the state was recorded in Lahaul-Spiti district with minus 5.2 degrees Celsius.
“Kalpa in Kinnaur, and some places in Solan and Kullu recorded temperatures around the freezing point. In Shimla, the temperature was around 3 degrees Celsius, which is slightly above normal,” Sharma said.
He added that Shimla, Kalpa, and Manali are witnessing temperatures above normal, while Solan recorded temperatures around zero degrees Celsius, showing a noticeable variation across different districts.
“In mid-hill districts, temperatures are running 3 to 4 degrees above normal. Some districts are reporting temperatures up to four degrees above normal,” he said.
However, in some plains areas, including Una, Bilaspur, and parts of Hamirpur, temperatures were recorded up to four degrees below normal. Other areas showed variations of one to two degrees from normal levels.
Sharma said a yellow alert has been issued for cold wave conditions in the plains. “For Shimla city and Shimla district, clouding is likely from the Janudary 16 to 19. Cloud cover is also expected around Kufri, but there is no indication of rain or snowfall,” he said.
Highlighting the rainfall deficit in the state, Sharma said, “Overall, Himachal Pradesh has recorded an 83 per cent rainfall deficit, and all 12 districts have received below-normal rainfall so far.”
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