North India cooldown: Snowfall, rain bring relief from early heatwave

New Delhi, Mar 19 (PTI) Fresh snowfall and rain in the mountains north of Delhi brought down the mercury in the national capital by notches on Thursday, stopping in its tracks the mounting heat, which soared to a record high of 36 degrees Celsius earlier in the month.

Visuals from Shimla showed a bevy of tourists surprised by the sudden chill brought by the rain. People draped in shawls and hoodies milled on the Mall Road as a tapering rain pattered down.

"When we checked on the internet, it showed that it may rain. And it did. The prediction came true. We had prepared accordingly and packed warmer clothes. So it's good, we are enjoying the weather," a tourist told PTI Videos.

Another female tourist said she was caught unawares by the rain.

"We are enjoying a lot. We did not expect it to rain so much, that's why I am in my summer clothes. Had I known, I would have worn a jacket," the woman said.

Meanwhile, Delhi experienced breezy weather due to brief spells of showers and drizzle.

Parts of the city received up to 12.5 mm of rainfall, keeping the minimum temperature down to 17.6 degrees Celsius.

"The system is expected to intensify over central Pakistan and adjoining parts of Punjab and Haryana from Thursday, leading to further rainfall over the next two days," Mahesh Palawat, a weather expert, told PTI.

"Current models suggest that weather conditions on March 20 are likely to be more intense," he said.

The city on Thursday recorded a maximum temperature of around 27 degrees Celsius, after simmering in the 30-plus degrees for most of the month.

In Jammu and Kashmir, the tourist resorts of Gulmarg and Sonamarg experienced fresh snowfall, while the plains were pummelled by heavy rain.

Approximately five to six inches of new snow had accumulated at the Gulmarg resort since the previous day, officials said.

Other higher-altitude areas in the Union Territory, including Pir Ki Gali along the Mughal Road in Shopian district, as well as Razdan Top, Gurez in Bandipora, and Sadhna Top in Kupwara, also received snow.

Most upper regions of the valley have experienced intermittent snowfall since Sunday.

The wet weather brought down temperatures across the region.

In Himachal's Manali and its adjoining areas, snow occasioned a surge in tourists' arrival.

People connected with Manali's tourism and allied industries welcomed the increase in hotel occupancy.

"The snowfall in Mid-March is a boon for the tourism industry as snow would last till summer in high altitude areas, attracting tourists, and the snow deficit during the winters would be covered up," said Roshan Thakur, president of Manali Hoteliers Association. PTI