Snowline Moves Eastward, Manali Receive First Snow, Shimla Next

Manali, a popular hilly resort of Himachal Pradesh received 1^st snowfall of this season on 05^thJan2022. This was just after Srinagar received its first snowfall of this season on January 4, 2022. The much awaited event was moderate in intensity and lasted for few hours, much to the delight of multitude of tourists. It is not over and done yet and more of it remains in store during this week. With a short break today, the activity is likely to resume tomorrow and go on till Sunday, 09^thJan 2022. The ensuing spell is expected to be heavier than the opening one and also much longer in duration.

Manali received 36mm of rain and snow in the past 24hr, dominated by fluffy snow than light spray of rain. Earlier, the previous day, the hilly resort on the bank of Beas river recorded 42mm of rainfall. The total rainfall in the 1^st week of Jan itself mounts to 80mm till 06^th Jan. In all likelihood, this figure is expected to cross the monthly normal of 108.4mm by a big margin, in the next 3days. Day maximum temperature yesterday could not lift beyond 3.8°C, which is one of the lowest on record. Last year, the lowest maximum temperature was 8°C on 06^thJan 2021. The mountainous town has the precedence of dropping below 2°C in the recent past. The average daily maximum for the month of January stands at 10.6°C. 

Manali is gateway for Skiing in the Solang Valley and Trekking in Parvati Valley. Manali, the adventurous town in the Kullu Valley gets connected with Spiti Valley through Rohtang Pass. A good bout of snow at this time of the year is rather essential to boost the adventure sports in the region.  Heavy snowfall is expected in this entire region between 07^th and 09^th Jan, with a spike on 08^thJan 2022.

The next destination for white coating in the mountains seems to be Shimla. Few other attractive elevated resorts like Kufri and Narkanda have already received snowfall on Wednesday, 05^thJan. Also, both the north and south portals of Atal Tunnel at Rohtang Pass got moderate snowfall on Tuesday.

An active western disturbance is arriving tomorrow over Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh.  Inclement weather conditions are expected to continue for 3 days, between 07^th and 09^th Jan. Peak activity is likely to be witnessed at Shimla on 08^thJan. Season’s 1^st snowfall will most probably be witnessed during this period at Shimla city, Jakhoo and Mashobra.