Shimla: District admn prohibits treks to religious shrines due to snowfall

Himachal Pradesh will be receiving heavy to moderate snowfall and rainfall for two days—November 25 and 26

In the wake of frequent snow spell, the administration have prohibited treks to religious shrines— Churdhar in Sirmaur district, Kamrunag and Shikari Devi in Mandi district.

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The administrations of Shimla, Mandi and Sirmaur district have advised the people, especially tourists’ to avoid venturing into snow-prone areas.

Besides the religious treks, the Mandi district administration has completely banned trek and visit to Parashar and Barot.

“Tourists have been advised to not to venture to Churdhar Peak via Nerwa, Chaupal and Kupvi in Shimla district. They must be cautious while travelling and avoid going near the rivers and treks at higher reaches,” Shimla deputy commissioner Amit Kashyap said.

Churdhar, located at an elevation of 11, 965 feet, is the holy place of a local deity Shirgul Maharaj who is widely worshipped by people of Sirmaur and Chopal, while Shikari Devi is a roofless shrine situated at the height of 10,768 feet in Mandi district. Kamrunag, another holy shrine in Mandi district, is famous for its lake and a temple of a local deity.

SNOW FORECAST ON NOV 25, 26

Himachal Pradesh will be receiving heavy to moderate snowfall and rainfall for two days—November 25 and 26— state meteorological (MeT) department director Manmohan Singh said.

“Due to fresh western disturbance, the state will be receiving snowfall at the higher hills of the state and rainfall in middle and lower hills,” he said.

Precipitation occurred at isolated places throughout the state during the last 24 hours. Minimum temperatures were four to five degrees above normal while maximum temperatures were four to five degrees below normal.

Manali, a prominent tourist destination in Kullu district, received 30mm rain and recorded 3.6 degrees minimum temperature while state capital Shimla recorded 10.4°C minimum temperature and received traces of rainfall. Kufri near Shimla recorded 5.8 degrees minimum temperature.

Dalhousie received 13mm rain and witnessed 4.6 degrees minimum temperature while Dharamshala recorded 2.2mm rain and reeled under 8 degrees minimum temperature.

Kalpa in Kinnaur district received 15.6 mm rain and had 3.3 degrees minimum temperature.

Keylong, headquarters of Lahaul and Spiti, was the coldest at -0.2 degrees while Berthin in Bilaspur recorded the highest temperature 22.8°C.