Saturday, 24 January 2026
Saturday, 24 January 2026
Snow has gripped landscapes in Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand—Indian hill regions that often resemble Europe when snow arrives, but also reveal the scale of disruption such weather brings.
In Himachal Pradesh, the season’s first major snowfall has shut roads, knocked out power and left large parts of the state grappling with isolation.
Heavy snowfall across the state led to the closure of 565 roads, including two national highways, and disrupted nearly 4,800 power distribution transformers, officials said on Friday.
According to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), the tribal district of Lahaul and Spiti has been the worst affected, with 292 roads blocked. These include NH-03 (Leh–Manali) and NH-505 (Kaza–Gramphu), both critical routes for local movement and winter supplies.
The snowfall has severely affected power infrastructure as well.
District administrations have begun snow-clearing operations, and residents have been advised to avoid unnecessary travel in areas that received fresh snowfall.
Massive road clearance operations were underway to restore traffic on the Srinagar–Jammu National Highway in Kashmir as well.
Hundreds of commuters were evacuated to safety and provided food and shelter by the Army, police and civil administration after they were left stranded on the 270-km Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, the only all weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country, the officials said.
According to data recorded by the Meteorological Department, several inches of fresh snowfall were reported during the intervening night in parts of Anantnag, Kulgam, Shopian, Baramulla, Budgam, Bandipora, Kishtwar and Rajouri since the last few days.
Officials said snowfall was also recorded in areas that had not witnessed snow for nearly a decade.
Uttarakhand on Friday, recieved the first snowfall of the year that covered almost all the high-altitude areas of the state with a thick blanket of snow.
According to officials, continuous rain since morning in most of the lower areas and plains of the state, including the capital Dehradun, has brought back the biting cold.
Significant snowfall occurred at various places in both the Garhwal and Kumaon divisions of Uttarakhand. Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, Yamunotri, Auli, Mussoorie, Chakrata, Dhanaulti and Munsiyari -- all of these places received snow. Nainital city also experienced hailstorms along with rain.
Schools up to class 12 have been closed in Dehradun, Tehri, Pauri, Chamoli, Uttarkashi and Pithoragarh districts following the change in weather.
However, the snowfall brought smiles to the faces of locals, business owners and tourists alike.
People also started posting videos of the snowfall on social media, showing roads, trees and houses all covered in a white blanket.
Some videos also showed tourists enjoying the snowfall on Mall Road and other places in Mussoorie.
The faces of farmers, apple growers and horticulturists, who had been eagerly waiting for rain and snowfall for a long time, also lit up.
The continuous snowfall and rain in the state also affected normal life in many places, with traffic movement and power supply getting disrupted at many places.
The Joshimath-Auli road leading to the National Skiing Centre in Auli in Chamoli district and the Rudraprayag-Pokhri-Gopeshwar road have been closed to traffic due to accumulated snow. Officials said that the snow is being cleared from the roads to restore traffic.
