Fresh snowfall in some districts of Uttarakhand

Dehradun, Jan 22: Icy winds today swept the whole of Uttarakhand with fresh snowfall in higher reaches of the hill districts of Chamoli, Uttarkashi and Rudraprayag and showers in the plains.

Badrinath, Hemkund Sahib, Gorson grassland, Nandadevi, Valley of Flowers National Park and Kedarnath Deer Park have been receiving snowfall since morning and the whole of Chamoli district is reeling under biting cold, Chamoli Disaster Management officer N N Joshi said.

Gangotri, Harshil, Taknor, Barshu, Dayara, Yamunotri and Kharsali in Uttarkashi district have also received fresh snowfall. The MeT department in Dehradun said snowfall in the hills and showers in plains have led to a drop in day temperature everywhere with Mukteshwar in Nainital district being the coldest at 4.3 degrees Celsius.

Snowfall in the hills and overcast conditions coupled with rain in lower areas are likely to continue for the next few days, it said. The Union Home Ministry had recently predicted that snow avalanches in areas located above 2,500 metres in the hill state from January 21-23.

All precautionary measures have been taken in view of the Home Ministry prediction and the situation is under control in residential areas despite fresh snowfall in the upper reaches, Joshi said.

Chief Secretary N Ravishankar has given directions to the District Magistrates of hill districts to keep a watch on identified sensitive zones and disaster-prone areas.

PTI