Snowfall disrupts air, road traffic in J-K, HP; rain across north brings day temp down

New Delhi: Snowfall affected normal life in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand on Sunday as several flights were cancelled and roads, including national highways, were closed for vehicular traffic.

Rains lashed Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand and the minimum temperature remained above normal in many areas.

All flights at Srinagar airport were cancelled, while traffic on the strategic 270-km Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was stopped for nearly four hours following a landslide in Jammu's Ramban district at around 11.15 am, officials said.

In a statement issued in Mumbai, private carrier IndiGo said six of its flights -- four to Srinagar and two to Leh -- were cancelled due to bad weather.

"Due to a drastic change in the weather conditions, the runway at Srinagar and Leh have been closed. This has led to the cancellation of four IndiGo flights to Srinagar and two IndiGo flights to Leh," the statement said.

Snowfall was also reported from the Poonch, Rajouri, Kishtwar and Doda districts besides the upper reaches of Reasi Gulmarg recorded a low of minus 7.0 degrees Celsius, Pahalgam minus 3.5 degrees Celsius, Kokernag minus 2.2 degrees Celsius and Srinagar minus 0.7 degrees Celsius.

The helicopter service to Mata Vaishno Devi shrine atop Trikuta hills in Reasi district also remained suspended during the day due to inclement weather, they said.

According to a MeT department forecast, the weather is expected to improve in Kashmir from Tuesday onwards.

The 40-day harsh winter period in the region known as 'Chilla-i-Kalan' ended on January 30. The valley witnessed a prolonged dry spell this winter, with no snowfall in the plains.

In Delhi, light rains lashed the national capital on Sunday morning as the minimum temperature in the city rose to 11.9 degrees Celsius, three notches above the season's average, while the maximum temperature settled at 20.3 degrees Celsius.

Different pockets of Delhi received rain between 5 am and 8 am and the city received 3 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours at 8.30 am.

The IMD has predicted more rain and moderate fog during the night hours.

In Himachal Pradesh, 475 roads, including five national highways were closed for vehicles following a fresh spell of snowfall and rains.

The sky remained heavily overcast throughout the day and reduced visibility affected vehicular traffic.

Kalpa in Kinnaur received 5.6 mm of snow followed by Bharmaur 5 cm, Gondla 4.2 cm, Keylong 3 cm, Khadrala and Kufri 2 cm each, Kukumseri 1.6 cm and Sangla and Pooh 1 cm each. Jogindernagar received 13 mm of rain followed by Slapper 12.5 mm, Rohru 10 mm, and Gohar 9 mm while Sarahan, Sujanpur Tira, Berthin, Nainadevi, Palampur, Seobagh, Shimla, Sundernagar, Dharamshala, Una, Solan received 5 to 7 mm of rains.

State capital Shimla which remained engulfed in thick fog and received 24 mm rain, recorded a high of five degrees, 6.2 degrees below normal.

Officials said 161 roads have been closed in Shimla followed by 157 in Lahaul and Spiti, 71 in Kullu, 69 in Chamba and 46 in Mandi district.

There was no significant change in the minimum and maximum temperatures and Kukumseri in Lahaul and Spiti was the coldest at night recording a low of minus 4.9 degrees C while Dhaulakuan was hottest during the day with a maximum temperature of 20.3 degrees C.

Biting cold gripped Uttarakhand after fresh snowfall in the higher reaches of the state and rain in the lower areas on Sunday.

Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, Yamunotri, Hemkund, Auli, Dehradun’s Chakrata and Chaurangikhal and Nachiketa Tal in Uttarkashi district received snowfall. Rain lashed many places in the state, including Dehradun, on Saturday night.

The apple orchard owners in Uttarakhand are happy due to the fresh snowfall as it brings sufficient moisture to the orchards which improve the yield of apples, pears, peaches and other cash crops.